You don’t fire your coach and GM weeks before the playoffs unless something is seriously broken. Or you’re breaking it on purpose. The Denver Nuggets just detonated their own foundation, firing Michael Malone and Calvin Booth. Yes, the same duo who led them to a historic championship just two seasons ago.
The silence from the front office is deafening, but not everyone’s staying quiet. Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce just torched the decision on-air, and their words hit like truth bombs
In a recent episode of Ticket and The Truth, their podcast that often feels more like a barbershop therapy session than sports analysis, Garnett couldn’t hide his confusion. “What are we doing?” he asked. Garnett then drove home the question echoing across the fanbase:
“And what’s the message saying when you fire your GM and Head Coach who you now won with?”
Pierce didn’t hold back either, “Now you can’t even focus on winning a championship. You’re wasting one of the best big men of the generation’s prime.”
Garnett agreed, “He’s had a great year, bro.”
Then, Pierce delivered the hammer, “I swear, if I’m Joker, I’m out of there. It’s too dysfunctional.”
It’s hard to disagree. Nikola Jokic recently recorded his 33rd triple-double of the season, reaffirming why he’s widely considered the best big man in basketball today. But even greatness has an expiration date, and chaos at the top could cost Denver its window.
As Garnett once famously said, “Loyalty is something that hurts you at times because you can’t get your youth back.”
That quote feels tailor-made for Jokic right now
The Nuggets have recently had their form slip. Also, they have undergone a massive amount of structural changes. Let us see what is going on at the franchise.
What is happening with the Denver Nuggets?
The Nuggets’ form on and off the court has led to a perfect storm of dysfunction. Denver is currently seeded fourth in the Western Conference with a record of 48 wins to 32 losses, having struggled recently by having four consecutive losses before turning the tide against the Sacramento Kings in a 124-116 brawl. Barely staying in playoff contention.
However, the main cause of the issues at the Nuggets’ dysfunction is what is going on with the coaching and front office changes. Head Coach Michael Malone had been sacked, and it was announced that general manager Calvin Booth’s contract would not be renewed next season. The reason reported was the deteriorating relationship between Malone and Booth. The rift was exacerbated by disagreements over player minutes and roles, particularly concerning Russell Westbrook and younger players like Jalen Pickett and Peyton Watson.
Nikola Jokic commented on the situation, saying, “You know when someone wants to wake somebody up or change your energy, that’s probably what they do. You know, in my country, if someone get fired, you’re worried it’s probably you the next. So I think it’s definitely changed something,” suggesting that this may be a wake-up call and that the situation of everybody in the franchise is shaky at best.
Now, with the appointment of the new interim coach, David Adelman, the Nuggets can hope for some semblance of normalcy. But the gestation period might be long. So, what should Nikola Jokic do? Should he move? Should he stick it out?
The post Echoing Celtics Legend’s Painful Truth, Nikola Jokic Urged to Abandon Loyalty as Nuggets Waste His Prime appeared first on EssentiallySports.
