Before the axe fell on head coach Michael Malone in Denver, ownership made three-time MVP Nikola Jokic aware of the move ahead of meeting with the since-fired team brass on Tuesday afternoon.
Malone, who guided the Nuggets to the NBA title in 2023, was fired and general manager Calvin Booth was informed that this season was his last.
Jokic stressed late Wednesday he had no input on either move. He said the change was relayed to him directly by Josh Kroenke, vice chairman of Kroenke Sports and Entertainment which owns the team, and painted a picture of a one-sided conversation that was never a discussion.
“I knew a little bit before everybody,” Jokic said Wednesday night after the Nuggets held off the Sacramento Kings to snap a four-game losing streak.
“And he told me, ‘We made a decision.’ So it was not a discussion. It was a decision. He told me why. And so I listened. And I accepted it. I’m not going to tell you what he told me. I’m going to keep that private.”
Denver (48-32), playing its first game under interim coach David Adelman, enters Wednesday in a tie for fourth place with the Los Angeles Clippers. They are one game behind the Los Angeles Lakers (49-31) and just in front of the Memphis Grizzlies (47-32) and the Golden State Warriors (47-33) in a tightly packed Western Conference playoff picture.
The regular season ends Sunday.
Jokic said the change with four games to play in the regular season sent an obvious message.
“I mean, when someone wants to make or change energy, that’s probably what they do,” he said. “In my country, if someone get fired, word is probably you are the next (to be fired).”
Jokic furthered his pursuit of becoming just the third player ever to average a triple-double for a season, posting 20 points, 12 rebounds and 11 assists vs. Sacramento (39-41).
“I texted to him,” Jokic said about reaching out to Malone. “It was a 10-year relationship … it was heavy day for everybody, probably especially for him and his family. But I would say it’s part of the business.”
