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Nuggets Source Reveals Stunning News About Franchise: 'Miserable'

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Ashish Mathur | Last updated Apr 11, 2025 12:51 PM ET

The Denver Nuggets fired general manager Calvin Booth and head coach Michael Malone on Tuesday. It was a stunning move since the Nuggets are in fourth place in the Western Conference standings and won the championship in 2023 against the Miami Heat.

Denver has a talented roster, headlined by three-time MVP Nikola Jokic, point guard Jamal Murray and power forward Aaron Gordon. The Nuggets are third in the NBA in points per game, fourth in offensive rating and ninth in net rating.

From the outside looking in, it appeared things were going well in Denver. However, that wasn't the case at all.

According to Tim MacMahon and Ramona Shelburne of ESPN, the vibe inside the Nuggets franchise was "miserable."

"Everybody in the organization was miserable," a Nuggets source told ESPN. "That's what Josh (Kroenke) felt. It's a bad vibe. You can't operate like that. He felt that if he removed those two people, everybody could just focus on doing their job. Change needed to happen."

David Adelman will serve as the Nuggets' interim head coach for the rest of the season and playoffs.

Denver defeated the Sacramento Kings in Adelman's first game at the helm.

"I think the players respect [Adelman]," a Nuggets source told ESPN. "They get along with him. I think they'll respond to him. I wanted him to get the opportunity earlier."

The Nuggets have two games remaining in the regular season against the Memphis Grizzlies and Houston Rockets.

Jokic, who was told by the leaders in Denver that Booth and Malone would be fired, believes a "beast" may have been awakened.

"Josh got the response that he wanted," Jokic said after the Nuggets defeated the Kings. "People say that we are vulnerable. But the beast is always the strongest, or the most dangerous, when they're vulnerable. So maybe he woke up the beast."

It will be interesting to see what the vibes in Denver are moving forward now that Booth and Malone are gone.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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