Denver ? Now that Marcus Camby is the NBA’s Defensive Player of the Year, he’s looking ahead – and behind.

The Denver Nuggets’ 33-year-old center said that while he cherishes winning the award for the first time in his 11-year pro career, he’d much rather be celebrating a championship in a couple of months.

That’s not an unusual refrain from winners of the NBA’s individual awards.

But how many get to use the occasion to take a jab at those who excluded him from the All-Star team?

“It’s kind of ironic how I can win the award and not make the All-Star team,” Camby said Friday. “The last couple of years I felt I had a great opportunity to be on that team. So, hopefully, next year with this award behind me, I can start getting some recognition about being on that team.

“It’s a great honor to be on the All-Star team and I’ve never made it.”

Camby is the third player in the last 20 years to win defensive player award after an All-Star snub.

Camby averaged a league-best 3.3 blocks to go with 11.2 points and 11.7 rebounds per game. He also averaged 1.24 steals, tops among centers. He received 70 first-place votes and 431 points from a panel of sports writers and broadcasters.