The Nuggets’ shock firing of their head coach Michael Malone took place on April 9, but a stunned NBA world is already abuzz with speculations over the possible reasons behind it. The Nuggets ownership has yet to make an official statement about getting rid of one of the most successful coaches in their franchise history just three games before the close of the regular season. And it’s not as if the team was tanking either — they’re 47-32 this season and are favored to make it into the playoffs.
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Malone spent the past 10 seasons as the head coach of the Nuggets. He took over the team in the midst of a rebuild and led Denver to the postseason in the 2018-19 season. From that point on, they elevated into perennial title contenders when healthy.
So why did the Nuggets’ sack Malone, a decision that ties the NBA record for the latest-season head coach firing in league history? NBA analyst Nick Wright thinks he knows the reason. The First Things First co-host puts the blame squarely on Russell Westbrook. He brought up past mishaps with other HCs in Westbrook’s past to support his case.
While people are pointing fingers in many different directions to justify Malone’s dismissal, Wright laid the responsibility on the Nuggets’ backup point guard.
“Where Russ goes, guys usually lose their jobs,” Wright said.
Wright is vividly referencing Westbrook’s tenure with the Lakers, which led to Frank Vogel’s firing, and his time with the Thunder, when head coach Scott Brooks lost his job.
No reports confirm Wright’s suspicion, but it raises significant questions about the Nuggets and their future. NBA insider Brian Windhorst gave more insight into why the Nuggets parted ways with Michael Malone.
Nuggets didn’t see eye-to-eye with Malone for some time
Windhorst joined ESPN’s Get Up to reveal there were some serious problems within the organization behind the scenes. He insisted that the Nuggets had been thinking of parting ways with Malone for quite some time now.
“Some winning this season is masking some problems,” Windhorst said. “It seems to me the ownership didn’t want Michael Malone to wiggle out of this by having a good postseason run.”
Why did the Nuggets fire HC Michael Malone? @WindhorstESPN has more ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/n535aeVEYf
— Get Up (@GetUpESPN) April 9, 2025
Windhorst revealed that Nuggets governor Josh Kroenke had been lookin to fire Malone for some time. There were occasions in the season where that nearly happened — but the team’s success disrupted it. They wanted to get behind this matter before a potential deep postseason run made their decision more difficult.
Firing a head coach a few games before the playoffs is something which almost never happens in the high-stakes world of NBA. Only time will tell whether the Nuggets made the right decision or would it come back to haunt them going forward.
