Feb 27, 2025; Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA; Denver Nuggets head coach Michael Malone and guard Jamal Murray (27) look on in the fourth quarter against the Milwaukee Bucks at Fiserv Forum. Mandatory Credit: Benny Sieu-Imagn Images Benny Sieu-Imagn Images

New Report on Reason for Nuggets Massive Michael Malone Firing

Originally posted on Denver Nuggets on SI
By Logan Struck | Last updated Apr 8, 2025 3:38 PM ET

Sitting in fourth place in the Western Conference with just three games left in the regular season, many fans were expecting the Denver Nuggets to compete for an NBA championship this season. The Nuggets must have felt differently.

On Tuesday, the Nuggets shockingly announced the firing of head coach Mike Brown and general manager Calvin Booth, practically cleaning house with the first round of the 2025 playoffs starting in less than two weeks.

Malone spent ten years as the head coach of the Nuggets, stringing together eight consecutive winning seasons and leading Denver to their first-ever NBA championship. No NBA coach had more wins than Malone in the past five seasons.

Most wins by an NBA head coach over last 5 seasons:

Michael Malone - 252
Ty Lue - 230
Steve Kerr - 228
Tom Thibodeau - 225
Erik Spoelstra - 219

Nuggets had 8 consecutive winning seasons under Malone.
— Underdog NBA (@UnderdogNBA) April 8, 2025

It is very strange to see a proven head coach get fired, especially at this point in the season. ESPN's Shams Charania reports on what led to this unexpected decision.

"They've lost four games in a row, they're now in the bottom-half of the league in defensive rating, and so they felt like the signs were there that this season was not going to end well," Charania says. "They're getting out ahead of what they felt they were going to do come offseason."

"They felt like the signs were there that this season was not going to end well."@ShamsCharania with more insight on the Nuggets firing head coach Michael Malone and GM Calvin Booth. pic.twitter.com/rlR6xdoX9E
— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) April 8, 2025

Denver firing both their head coach and general manager is certainly a shock, but reportedly, things were not too pretty between the two.

"The fabric in what both sides had philosophically, there were some big differences there," Charania says about Malone and Booth. "Instead of maybe letting go of one guy and keeping the other, the Nuggets, Josh Kroenke, today let go of both."

The Nuggets shocked the NBA world with their huge decision on Tuesday, but time will tell if it pays off this postseason. With three-time NBA MVP Nikola Jokic leading the way, the Nuggets should be competing for a championship every season, and parting ways with Malone could pay off.

This article first appeared on Denver Nuggets on SI and was syndicated with permission.

More must-reads: