Nuggets Feeling Vindicated After Shocking Late Season Firings of GM, Coach

The Nuggets shockingly fired their head coach and general manager with just three games left in the regular season.

Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic (15) before the game against the LA Clippers. / Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images

Less than a month ago, the Denver Nuggets made the shocking decision to fire head coach Michael Malone and general manager Calvin Booth with only three games remaining in the regular season. Though Malone had been with the team for nearly 10 seasons and led them to a championship less than two years ago, it wasn't enough to keep the Nuggets from pulling the trigger.

It's too soon to tell if the Nuggets made the right move with those firings, but the team does seem to be feeling good about their decision after defeating the Los Angeles Clippers in the first round of the postseason. The Nuggets might have compiled a 47–32 record and ranked fourth in the Western Conference standings under Malone, but a four-game losing streak had the organization worried they were bound for an early playoff exit.

"If we don't make the changes, there's no way we're even in a Game 7," a Nuggets executive told ESPN's Ramona Shelburne.

The Nuggets lost in Game 7 of the Western Conference semifinals last year to the Minnesota Timberwolves, but they didn't even think they had a shot of returning to a Game 7 this season with Malone and Booth. After the change, the Nuggets did play in a seven-game series with the Clippers, and won—an important victory for a franchise that does not want to waste a single season of star Nikola Jokic's prime.

"I think the owner ... wanted to change something, to change the energy, and probably he did," Jokic said after the Nuggets defeated the Clippers, via ESPN. "He got the result he was looking for."

Of course, there's no guarantee that Malone would not have led the Nuggets to a series win over the Clippers roo. If the Nuggets do reach the NBA Finals or at least the Western Conference finals, it should be a strong sign that the team made the right change, even if they did so with poor timing.

---

More NBA on Sports Illustrated

feed