Denver Nuggets Parade and Rally Survival Guide

Are you ready to party? If so, start heading downtown now!

The Denver Nuggets Champions Celebration starts officially at 9 a.m. at Civic Center Park with GRiZ, Big Gigantic and Paws the Music performing live, as well as displays of Nuggets season highlight reels on big screens around the park. Those screens will also show the Denver Nuggets Champions Parade when it starts at 10 a.m.

The parade will leave from Union Station, travel along 17th Street to Broadway, then turn south to Civic Center Park for a rally on the steps of the Denver City and County Building with Denver Nuggets players, coaches and management, including owners Stan Kroenke and Josh Kroenke; Denver Mayor Michael B. Hancock and other civic leaders; the Denver Nuggets Dancers and PA announcer Kyle Speller; the Skyline Drumline; the Mile High City Hype Squad; the Average Joes; the Sizzlin' Seniors; Ball Team Aluminum; and OG mascot Rocky.

And a cast of hundreds of thousands of fans that could dwarf the crowds that crammed downtown for last June's Colorado Avalanche celebration. Advise the planners: "There will be increased pedestrian and vehicle traffic throughout the downtown area. Be patient and kind to fellow members of Nuggets Nation. Bring your winning enthusiasm — it's going to be an exciting day!"

And a day filled with traffic headaches, whether or not you're heading to the festivities. Roads along the route all closed at 7 a.m., and you won't be able to cross those streets. Here's the map:

Not surprisingly, the organizers are strongly suggesting you leave your car at home and come by bike, scooter or public transportation.

Here's what organizers suggest you bring:
Water - LOTS of it!
Sunscreen
Nuggets gear - especially hats to protect you from the sun

Here's what we suggest you bring:
Rain gear (rain is predicted before the festivities are over)
A lot of patience: Even without a huge event, many of downtown's streets are a construction mess, and Broadway is particularly bad south of Civic Center.

Here's what organizers suggest you leave behind:

Anything that takes up a lot of space
Chairs and seating of any kind
Blankets, tarps, beach towels, etc.
Inflatable objects (beach balls, latex balloons, etc.)
Umbrellas
Hard-case containers (coolers, briefcases, etc.)
Large backpacks, suitcases, beach bags, equipment bags, etc.
Grills or propane

Anything that could disrupt the event
Cans and bottles
Air horns/whistles/vuvuzelas
Animals (except service animals)
Chemicals
Fireworks, smoke bombs, etc.
Drones
Audio/video recording devices (including large cameras and tripods)
Laser pointers
Police/radio scanners
Skateboards/rollerblades

Here's what police order you to leave at home:
Anything illegal to consume/use in public
Alcohol, marijuana and illegal drugs
Weapons (i.e., knives, pepper spray, stun-guns, any concealed weapons, firearms, etc.)

If you'd rather not fight the crowds, you can watch the parade and rally on Altitude Sports and Denver7; the festivities will also be livestreamed on Denver 8 TV and Denver7.com.

Oh, and one last note: If you have a Denver County Court appearance scheduled today, you're not off the hook. Just go to the south end of City Hall to access the courtrooms (and good luck!)

Find more information here.