The Denver Nuggets made an unexpected decision this week to part ways with head coach Michael Malone, just days before the regular season ended and the playoffs began. The move caught everyone off guard in the NBA, including Carmelo Anthony, who offered some eye-opening advice regarding the coach’s future.
“If I’m San Antonio, I’m going to get Mike Malone,” Anthony said on a recent episode of his podcast, 7PM in Brooklyn. Referring to Gregg Popovich still being the coach of the San Antonio Spurs despite his prolonged absence due to health issues, Carmelo added: “Pop done… Bring Malone out there.”
The former Nuggets forward seemed excited about the possibility. “I’m a fan of Mike Malone, personally. I’m a fan of him. I don’t really know what happened, but I’m a fan of Mike Malone. So I would love to see him get a job ASAP. Like, San Antonio should be talking to him. That’s a great conversation,” he said.
“You already come from a culture. You know the San Antonio culture,” Carmelo continued, reflecting on what Malone could find in his potential new team. “You got another generational player (Victor Wembanyama), you got a future All-Star on your team in Stephon Castle, he’s really, really good. You got De’Aaron Fox over there with you, get some draft picks, you know, might get Cooper (Flagg).”
Carmelo Anthony weighs in on Malone’s firing by Denver
The news of Mike Malone’s firing broke while Carmelo Anthony was recording the podcast, so it caught both him and his co-hosts by surprise. “When (expletive) like that happens, that means the front office, execs, feel like ‘we’ve peaked,’” was his first conclusion.
“You don’t do that. I don’t give a (expletive) who it is. You don’t do that. Bro, we got three games left, about to go into the playoffs. You guys can still make a run. Why are you pulling that trigger like that? That goes to show me you all look at this season as a wash,” Anthony said. He then put himself in the shoes of the Nuggets players to try to understand what they might be thinking: “They already believe we can’t do anything. Internally, they have these conversations, ‘They don’t think we can win.’”
Carmelo Anthony reflects on Jokic’s role after Malone’s sacking
Reflecting on the role that Nikola Jokic might have had in the situation, Anthony initially said: “I don’t think he cares enough to talk about the coach.” But he added: “That’s where Joker has a say-so. Not saying he has a say-so in Mike Malone being fired. If the coach-player relationship was strong like that, I gotta let the front office know that that was some (expletive).”