The Denver Nuggets sent a shockwave through the NBA on Tuesday, parting ways with head coach Michael Malone and general manager Calvin Booth.
It’s a move that has stunned the NBA community since Malone just led the Nuggets to an NBA title in 2023 and has guided them to the fourth-best record in the Western Conference this season.
Even longtime NBA writer Frank Isola was off guard by this news, calling it “insanity.”
“Insanity,” Isola tweeted. “Same group who haven’t provided Jokic with a better supporting cast and failed to sign a top striker at Arsenal finally did something today.
Insanity.
Same group who haven’t provided Jokic with a better supporting cast and failed to sign a top striker at Arsenal finally did something today. https://t.co/eluuhvUWb7— Frank Isola (@TheFrankIsola) April 8, 2025
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Even though the Nuggets have lost four in a row and seven of their last 10 games, they have still been one of the best teams in the Western Conference this season. If the playoffs were to start on Tuesday, they’d play the Los Angeles Clippers in the first round.
The Nuggets are also only a game and a half behind the Los Angeles Lakers for third in the conference. It’s a crazy time to fire a head coach and a general manager since the playoffs start in a couple of weeks.
The Nuggets have three games left in the regular season before they start the playoffs. They play the Sacramento Kings on Wednesday, the Memphis Grizzlies on Friday, and the Houston Rockets on Sunday.
Lead assistant coach David Adelman will serve as the interim head coach for the rest of the season. Malone had been the head coach of the Nuggets for a decade before being let go.
Tip-off for Wednesday’s Nuggets-Kings game will be at 10 p.m. ET.