Michael Malone's Reaction To Shocking Firing - He Did Not Take It Well

It's been weeks since the shocking firing that saw Michael Malone relinquish his head coaching duties. According to Brian Windhorst on the Hoop Collective, Malone did not take the news well after he was informed of his dismissal.

“It got out pretty quickly in the NBA that Michael Malone’s reaction to being fired was not calm, which is not a surprise. I don’t blame him.”

The Nuggets have made headlines recently after parting ways with their esteemed championship coach. Nobody could have predicted this would happen at this point in the season and it seems that even Malone himself had no idea what was coming.

Malone, 53, was one of the NBA's longes tenured coaches before being fired earlier this month. He led the Denver Nuggets during their most prosperous era, including their championship win in 2023.

After years of experience and a title to validate his authority, Malone should have had the ultimate job security. So when he was fired and let go just a few games before the playoffs, it was enough for him to completely crash out.

The decision did not come easy for Nuggets management, but they felt the change was necessary to spark some life into the team and end a longstanding feud that was turning the locker room toxic.

“The players were freakin’ miserable, man. You could see it," a source told Tim MacMahon and Ramona Shelburne. "The effort would come and go. I just wish it happened sooner. We wouldn’t be in this mess.”

With Nikola Jokic, Jamal Murray, and Michael Porter Jr., the Nuggets have a championship core that can compete against the best in the West. Together, they've led the Nuggets to the fourth seed at 48-32.

With Malone gone, along with former GM Calvin Booth, the Nuggets can move on from the infighting and finally agree on a plan for their future. One thing that's already been set is Nikola Jokic's superstar status and he's still at the peak of his powers at 30 years old.

To maximize what's left of his career, the Nuggets are going to need to maintain a positive culture in the locker room so the team can play with the proper chemistry and coordination on the court.

Interim coach David Adelman is going to be vying for Malone's job but he still has a lot to prove before he locks-up that position. If a guy like Micheal can lose the locker room and his job so abruptly, there's no guarantee that Adelman will be able to figure it out on the fly ahead of the NBA playoffs.

Only time will tell how this plays out for the Nuggets but the coaching scene is brutal right now and the leash is shockingly short. Over the past few years, several championship coaches have been fired or replaced, including Frank Vogel, Mike Budenholzer, and Michael Malone.

No job is truly safe in the NBA coaching world and it's a frustrating reality of the field. For the players, it's never easy to adjust to a new coach mid-season but that's a lot better than trying to play through a toxic situation from the inside.