I thought we left the words “shocking” and “stunning” in the past post-Luka Doncic trade, but here we are. It seems that firing NBA coaches so close to the playoffs has become the new normal, with the Memphis Grizzlies kicking things off by firing Taylor Jenkins last week and the Denver Nuggets firing Michael Malone this week. The Nuggets one-upped the Grizzlies, though, by also firing general manager Calvin Booth. Take that for data, Memphis!
The move came as a shock across the league, with Denver tracking to clinch another playoff spot and Malone’s championship pedigree. However, the Nuggets were in the midst of a four-game slide and a record of 11-13 since the All-Star break. This is despite the fact that center Nikola Jokic is having the best season of his career.
With every big piece of NBA news comes the “now they tell us” piece from The Athletic and in the light of their report, the gamble Denver took becomes a little more clear.
The Denver Nuggets made the right decision to fire Michael Malone.
According to The Athletic, Malone’s brash personality and stubbornness is what cost him in the end. It was no secret that he had a strong dislike towards Booth, but it got to the point where Malone wasn’t playing the young players Booth drafted out of spite. Jalen Pickett was the main example used, as Malone didn’t have enough trust in him and would rather play Russell Westbrook.
Speaking of Westbrook, Malone’s unwavering loyalty towards him despite his erratic play was another cause for his firing.
"“Malone’s choice to continue supporting Westbrook, despite the frustration he was causing on and off the floor, led to a loss of credibility among the team’s key players.”"The Athletic
Amongst those key players was Jokic, whose patience was wearing thin recently, and he was growing fed up with Malone’s ways. The three-time MVP had been showing a lot more frustration recently on the bench during games.
Malone had also lost the locker room since Denver’s loss to the tanking Washington Wizards and his harsh comments in his postgame presser against the Blazers did not help matters. It seems that his ways were not working on the team anymore.
Lastly, Malone’s tense relationship with Booth had begun to wear on the locker room, despite multiple sit-downs with team president Josh Kroenke throughout the season. Kroenke had grown fed up with the dynamic and decided the team needed a jolt to end the season.
It was the right decision for the Nuggets to fire Malone, even with it being close to the postseason
With all of that being said, the Nuggets made the right decision to fire Malone. His stubbornness and inability to relate to what his team needed is what cost him in the end. Any time you lose the locker room as a coach, that is a death sentence. If your star player has grown tired of you, that is another death sentence. Might as well write the pink slip then and there.
Yes, Malone became a champion with Denver. Yes, he won over 500 games. At the end of the day, though, the NBA has become a “what have you done for me recently” league, and recently, Malone has not been at the peak of his coaching powers. His losing the locker room combined with the Nuggets becoming a bottom-ten team in defensive rating was too much to overcome.
Now, Denver will hope that interim coach David Adelman can revive the team’s season and championship aspirations. Time will tell if he is successful, but even if he isn’t, Malone left the Nuggets no choice but to let him go.