The Denver Nuggets fired head coach Michael Malone and announced they won’t extend the contract of general manager Calvin Booth on Tuesday.
The Nuggets have just three regular-season games left. This shocking move came just days after the Memphis Grizzlies surprisingly parted ways with head coach Taylor Jenkins.
Denver (47-32) would be the No. 4 seed in the Western Conference if the season ended today, while Memphis (46-32) still has a shot at avoiding the Play-In Tournament.
“The timing, it’s tough with three games to go and the position they are [in] to play for everything,” Nets head coach Jordi Fernandez said. “[He’s] a super accomplished coach, a person that means a lot to me and my career. I would not be here without him. Six of the 10 years that he was in Denver I was there with him.
Malone led the Nuggets to their first NBA title in 2023. He was removed from his post with a 471-327 record in 10 seasons. David Adelman, Denver’s top assistant, will serve as interim head coach for the remainder of the season.
Fernandez served as an assistant under Malone in Denver from 2016-22.
“My development and his mentorship towards me, it means the world,” Fernandez said of Malone. “And when you hear something like that, it’s not a great day. It’s part of this business but definitely shocking. With the championship coach that he is, for sure he’ll be back in this league coaching very soon, but not something you want to hear.”
According to Tony Jones, Sam Amick and Zach Powell of The Athletic, Jokic “has been frustrated” with Denver’s “defensive commitment and performance this season.”
“It’s a very weird landscape for coaching in the NBA, in my opinion,” Pelicans head coach Willie Green said. “All the guys that you mentioned, including Mike Malone, they’ve won. They’ve won at a high level. You try to do what you can and try to help the team the best way you can from your position, but it definitely leaves some questions.”
When asked about the current state of coaching in the NBA — and his own job security — Fernandez simply praised his employers.
“I love my owner, I love my GM, I love the people that I work for and I’m only a positive person,” Fernandez said. “So, I’m going to come into work every day thinking I’m going to be here for 15 years, and whenever I want to go back to Spain and retire, that’s how I feel.”
