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[Saba Sports News] The Denver Nuggets made a stunning move on Tuesday by firing head coach Michael Malone with just three games left in the regular season.
Now, emerging reports suggest that Malone’s handling of Russell Westbrook may have played a key role in his dismissal.
According to a report by Sam Amick and Tony Jones of The Athletic, internal tension between Malone and general manager Calvin Booth had been brewing for some time—both over basketball decisions and broader team dynamics. Westbrook, the report notes, was potentially “the biggest lightning rod” in that rift.
Despite Denver’s struggles during a recent slump, Malone continued to give significant minutes to the 35-year-old Westbrook, opting to play him over 25-year-old guard Jalen Pickett.
That decision reportedly led to growing frustration within the locker room, as some key players began to question Malone’s judgment.
The situation appeared to boil over following Denver’s April 1 loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves. While Nikola Jokic recorded a historic 60-point triple-double, Westbrook made multiple costly mistakes late in the game.
When asked about a critical miscommunication between Westbrook and Jokic, Malone defended the veteran and subtly criticized his younger players.
“He knows what big games are about,” Malone said of Westbrook. “We’re playing a lot of guys that have no idea what big games are about.”
That public backing of Westbrook reportedly did not sit well with everyone in the organization.
Just one day after Malone’s firing, interim coach David Adelman took a different approach. In a win over the Sacramento Kings, Adelman benched Westbrook late in the game and gave Pickett extended run—something that likely wasn’t a coincidence. Pickett responded with 18 points and nailed 5-of-7 from three-point range.
While there were other reported disagreements between Malone and Booth, including philosophical clashes on team development and rotations, the coach’s unwillingness to shift away from Westbrook appears to have been one of the final straws.