Michael Malone led the Denver Nuggets to their first NBA championship in 2023, solidifying their spot in the playoffs for the seventh straight year. Despite encountering a four-game losing streak, they remain in contention for home-court advantage in the opening round.
In an unexpected turn of events, the Nuggets made a bold decision with only three games left in the regular season.
On Wednesday, the franchise announced Malone’s departure as head coach in a shocking move just prior to the end of the regular season. Also parting ways with the team is general manager Calvin Booth, whose contract will not be extended. David Adelman has been appointed to take charge for the remainder of this season.
Josh Kroenke, the vice chairman of Kroenke Sports and Entertainment, which owns the Nuggets, stated, “This decision was made with regret. We felt it necessary to make a change at the coaching level.”
“This decision was not taken lightly; it was thoroughly evaluated, and we proceeded with the intention of giving our team the best chance at being competitive for the 2025 NBA championship and delivering another title to Denver and our fans around the globe,” Kroenke commented.
Michael Malone on the sidelines during a game. Getty
In NBA history, there’s never been a case where a team has replaced its coach with only three games remaining in the regular season and still headed to the playoffs. Although the Nuggets have not yet secured their playoff berth, they are guaranteed at least a spot in the play-in tournament. The previous record for the latest coaching change in a playoff-bound team occurred in 1983, when Larry Brown left the New Jersey Nets with six games left for a position at the University of Kansas.
This season, the Nuggets hold a 47-32 record, amidst a competitive race for home-court advantage in the playoffs. Having celebrated their championship victory in 2023, they fell to Minnesota in a game seven during last year’s Western Conference semi-finals.
In their last game—a 125-120 loss to Indiana—Malone took responsibility for the team’s struggles.
“I’ll start with myself: Losing four consecutive games is tough, and I won’t point fingers. It’s on me, as the head coach, for not performing my duties to the best of my ability,” Malone reflected. “It’s easy to say ‘family’ when you’re winning, but can you weather the storm together when things aren’t going well?”
Despite the team’s downturn, star player Nikola Jokic, a three-time NBA MVP, is enjoying an outstanding season, averaging 30 points, 12.8 rebounds, and 10.2 assists per game. Yet, even his exceptional performance hasn’t guaranteed the Nuggets solid footing as the season concludes.
After the set back against the Pacers, Jokic expressed uncertainty about the team’s current challenges.
“I don’t know. Perhaps we just… I don’t actually know,” Jokic confided.
Calvin Booth exits as the general manager of the Denver Nuggets Getty
The Nuggets are optimistic that this shake-up will provide the solution they seek.
Malone held the fourth-longest active coaching tenure in the NBA, following San Antonio’s Gregg Popovich, Miami’s Erik Spoelstra, and Golden State’s Steve Kerr, winning 471 games during his time in Denver—39 more than the previous franchise record held by Doug Moe.
“While the timing of this decision is regrettable, coach Malone laid the groundwork for our championship-level programme. However, we believe this is a necessary step to maintain our competitive edge. Championship-level expectations and standards remain for this season, and as we look ahead, we aim to build upon the foundations established during Malone’s remarkable decade in Denver,” Kroenke affirmed.
Malone’s tenure saw initial struggles with losing records in his first two years, but he then guided the team to winning records in each of his subsequent eight seasons.
This upcoming playoff series will mark the seventh consecutive appearance for the Nuggets—although they haven’t yet secured a spot this season, they are at minimum guaranteed a place in the play-in tournament.
Since Malone’s first playoff appearance in 2019, the Nuggets have advanced past the first round six times in seven attempts, reaching the Western Conference finals during the 2020 Orlando bubble and capturing the championship by winning 16 out of 20 playoff games in 2023.
This is the second instance in recent weeks of a postseason-bound team dismissing their coach, as the Memphis Grizzlies also parting ways with Taylor Jenkins late last month, appointing Tuomas Iisalo as interim coach with nine games remaining in the season.
Coach Michael Malone celebrates with his championship ring prior to the season-opener Justin Tafoya via Getty Images
The Nets previously parted ways with Brown (he officially resigned) with six games remaining in the 1982-83 season. Similarly, they replaced Kenny Atkinson with Jacque Vaughn for the last ten games of the 2019-20 “bubble” season. The 1983 and 2020 Nets are a combined 0-6 in playoff games following those coaching changes; it remains to be seen how the Grizzlies and Nuggets will fare in this year’s playoffs.
Booth joined the Nuggets in 2017 as an assistant general manager and ascended to the GM position in July 2020. His most recent contract extension was signed in 2022.
Kroenke acknowledged Booth’s contributions to constructing the championship-winning roster, stating, “Calvin’s game knowledge, scouting passion, and extensive history in the NBA as a player and executive propelled our organisation to new heights, which we will continue to build on.”
The Nuggets are set to face Sacramento on Thursday.
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