Michael Malone Firing Is Tied For Latest Coaching Change In NBA History

In keeping with the theme of the 2024-25 NBA season, the Denver Nuggets made a shocking move with less than a week left in the regular season. Long-time head coach Michael Malone was unexpectedly fired on Tuesday morning, ending his ten-year tenure with the team on the eve of their seventh-straight postseason appearance.

Nuggets Make Latest Coaching Change In NBA History

The move sent yet another shock wave through the league. Malone has been one of the more respected coaches in the league over the past few years, and was less than two years removed from bringing the Nuggets their first NBA championship in team history. Denver was in second place in the Western Conference as recently as March 18th, but they’ll now make their playoff push under an interim head coach.

Sure, the Nuggets are 11-13 since the All-Star break and have seen their defensive efficiency suffer a huge drop-off. The team has been struggling lately, but there is likely more to the story than just Denver’s dip in production over the past few weeks.

With just three games left in the regular season, Malone’s firing is now tied for the latest coaching change in NBA history. During the 1980-81 season, the Atlanta Hawks fired Hubie Brown with three games left to play, but the team was 31-48 at the time, and not on the brink of a playoff appearance. In that respect, Malone’s departure makes for arguably the most shocking mid-season coaching change that the league has ever seen.

This is tied for the latest coaching change in NBA history, per ESPN Research, matching Hubie Brown in 1980-81. https://t.co/9MeAjEuAQo

— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) April 8, 2025

The team also announced that they would be parting ways with general manager Calvin Booth after nearly five years on the job.

Malone is the third NBA head coach to be fired this season. The Sacramento Kings parted ways with Mike Brown just before the 2025 calendar year began, which Malone had some strong words and feelings about. Then, on March 28th, the Memphis Grizzlies fired Taylor Jenkins with their team in 4th place in the Western Conference at the time.

David Adelman will take over the head coaching duties. He has been an assistant coach in Denver since 2017.

Michael Malone was the winningest head coach in Nuggets history. On top of the championship that he helped deliver in 2023, his 451 wins are the most in franchise history, and his 762 regular season games coached are the second-most behind only Doug Moe (1980-1990).