Denver Nuggets Fire Head Coach Mike Malone and GM Calvin Booth Ahead of Playoffs

In somewhat of an unprecedented move, the Denver Nuggets cleaned house Tuesday morning — firing head coach Mike Malone and GM Calvin Booth.

The firing of an executive and head coach isn’t out of the ordinary. However, with less than five games until the postseason, the timing of these dismissals has raised more than a few eyebrows.

Josh Kroenke, the vice chairman of Kronke Sports and Entertainment, issued the following statement on Malone:

This decision was not made lightly. And was evaluated very carefully, and we do it only with the intention of giving our group the best chance at competing for the 2025 NBA Championship and delivering another title to Denver and our fans everywhere. While the timing of this decision is unfortunate, as Coach Malone helped build the foundation of our now championship-level program, it is a necessary step to allow us to compete at the highest level right now. Championship-level standards and expectations remain in place for the current season, and as we look to the future, we look forward to building on the foundations laid by Coach Malone over his record-breaking 10-year career in Denver.

Denver is currently in a very competitive playoff race within the Western Conference. Depending on how the final few games shake-out, the Nuggets could find themselves in the play-in tournament.

Constant injuries to Aaron Gordon and Jamal Murray have hindered the ceiling of this current team. Nikola Jokic continues to perform at an MVP level — though the Nuggets clearly are far from the group that won the NBA Championship two years ago.

Malone first took over in 2015-16. Since then, he’s led Denver to six playoff appearances, three Division Titles, and one NBA Title.

Booth, a former NBA player himself, had been the General Manager of the team for the last three seasons. There have been rumors and alleged reports of a divide between Booth and Malone specifically. In the end, neither ended up keeping their respective positions.

Taking over for Malone will be assistant coach David Adelman — the son of longtime ex-NBA coach Rick Adelman.