Inside The Nuggets

Denver Nuggets Executive Breaks Silence on Controversial Firings

The Denver Nuggets shocked the world by dismissing Mike Malone and Calvin Booth just days before the playoffs
Colby Faria|
Jun 15, 2023; Denver, CO, USA; Denver Nuggets owner Stan Kroenke (left) and president Josh Kroenke (right) during the championship parade after the Denver Nuggets won the 2023 NBA Finals. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images
Jun 15, 2023; Denver, CO, USA; Denver Nuggets owner Stan Kroenke (left) and president Josh Kroenke (right) during the championship parade after the Denver Nuggets won the 2023 NBA Finals. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images | Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images

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Denver Nuggets

Just days before the NBA playoffs begin, the Denver Nuggets have made some major moves that sent shockwaves through the basketball world.

On Tuesday afternoon, the Nuggets announced that the club would be parting ways with both head coach, Mike Malone and general manager, Calvin Booth, effective immediately.

Vice Chairman of Kroenke Sports & Entertainment, Josh Kroenke sat down with the Nuggets' social media team to give fans a deeper look into why the organization decided to part ways with both Malone and Booth.

"This wasn't a decision that was taken lightly and wasn't a decision that was reactionary to anything specific" Kroenke admitted. "Having observed our group over a very long period of time, there were trends that were very worrisome at different points in time but they would get masked by a few wins here and there."

While Kroenke believes the issues were bigger than just winning and losing games, he does admit that the team's current trend of losses during the second-half of the season had him under the belief that the club was headed for an early playoff exit if something wasn't changed.

"In the world of professional sports where winning and losing is your currency, winning can mask a lot of things. We went on an eight game winning streak right before the All-Star break but since then, I think we're 11-13, we've lost our last four and we're trending toward a direction that I thought would have an end to our season in the very near future."

For the remainder of the season, the Nuggets have appointed assistant coach, David Adelman as the team's interim head coach.

The Nuggets' first game in the post-Malone era goes down on Wednesday night against the Sacramento Kings at 10:00 p.m. EST.

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Colby Faria
COLBY FARIA

Colby’s decade-plus sports writing experience spans across the likes of various sports, which includes bylines at the likes of CBS and Bleacher Report.

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