Denver Nuggets Make Shocking Move Before NBA Playoffs

Despite Jokic's impressive season and the Nuggets having the No. 4 seed in the Western Conference, ESPN's Shams Charania reports that the team has chosen to fire head coach Michael Malone after ten years in the role. 

Malone has a record of 471-327 as the head coach of the Denver Nuggets. He led the team to its first NBA championship in the 2022-23 season and subsequently signed a contract extension, which made him one of the highest-paid coaches in the league. This extension was for two additional years on top of the two years remaining on his original contract, extending his tenure through the 2026-27 NBA season.

Additionally, it was reported that the Nuggets have fired general manager Calvin Booth, who has held the position since 2020. Malone's firing comes as a shock, given that he has transformed the Nuggets into a perennial championship contender. Before his arrival, the team won only 36 and 30 games in the two preceding seasons. Since Malone took over, only his first two seasons saw the team win fewer than 45 games.

This dismissal marks the second surprising firing of the last couple of weeks of the season. Memphis Grizzlies head coach Taylor Jenkins was let go on March 28 despite the team being tied for the No. 4 seed in the playoffs. Since Jenkins' departure, the Grizzlies have fallen to the No. 8 seed but tied for the No. 5 seed. They are 2-3 in the five games since his departure. 

The Nuggets are facing a difficult situation, having lost four consecutive games and three of their last seven. They have three games remaining in the season: an away game against the Sacramento Kings on Wednesday, a home game against the Grizzlies on Friday and another away game against the Houston Rockets on Sunday. Lead assistant David Adelman will step in as the interim head coach.