Michael Malone - Moach of the Year

“A good coach will make his players see what they can be rather than what they are.”
– Ara Parseghian

Let it never be said Michael Malone can’t say something that will get a laugh. He is witty, incisive, and just blunt enough to be a great interview that can get a wry smile out of even seasoned players and reporters. But when he was introduced as the Brand-Spanking-New Head Coach of the Denver Nuggets, Malone’s first solid laugh at a press conference was highly unintentional. All of the local and national talk once he was announced was about his reputation as a defensive coach in comparison to the ever-offensively-minded team he was taking over. He says it far better in his few minutes at the mic, and later in a question, but both times, his defensive aspirations catch a chuckle or two, even as Malone made clear exactly who he was from the start…

“This is a great opportunity, and I know once we open it up for questions, all we’re gonna talk about is pace, and how I’m a guy that wants to walk the ball up the floor. I have coached 106 games as an NBA Head Coach. Don’t paint me, don’t put me in a hole by saying ‘this is who you are’. I played to the strength of our roster, and we were efficient. And that’s one thing I stressed to both Josh (Kroenke) and Tim (Connelly) throughout the process. I believe in playing fast, but more important to me is playing with efficiency. 12 years in a row now, Denver has been top five in pace of play. What they’ve gotten away from is being efficient on the offensive end, and being a team that defends at a high level. And that’s something I know I can bring to the table. So we will be a team that defends (chuckles from the room), rebounds, and runs, with purpose….”

Malone continued on about using the altitude and the strength of this opportunity, but what sounded pretty ridiculous nine years ago sounds pretty damned prescient now. Efficiency. Defending as a team at a high level. Rebounding. Defense into offense. Sounds exactly like the Denver Nuggets of today. Almost as if the coach’s plan came fully to fruition.

Mike also has the respect of players all over the league, not only from his head coaching stop in Sacramento, but from his time as an assistant coach with the Knicks, Cavaliers, Hornets, and Warriors. Luminary players who worked with him such as LeBron James, Steph Curry, Draymond Green, and many many more have lauded Malone’s ethic and effort as being key to their successes while he was there, championships included.

A different view of the success Malone has enjoyed in Denver… Here’s his regular season record over the last nine seasons with the Nuggets:

• 2015-16: 33-49
• 2016-17: 40-42
• 2017-18: 46-36 (including a Game 82 OT loss to miss the playoffs by a hair)
• 2018-19: 54-28 (made it to the second round of the playoffs, losing a game 7)
• 2019-20: 46-27 (abbreviated COVID season, lost WCF in the bubble)
• 2020-21: 47-25 (Jamal Murray injury late in season, lost playoffs in the second round)
• 2021-22: 48-34 (Murray out all season, lost playoffs in the first round)
• 2022-23: 53-29 (Won their FIRST F—ING CHAMPIONSHIP)
• 2023-24: 57-25 (tied their best regular season record ever, and TBD)

So, with all of the above data being pretty inarguable, how in the Maxie Miner is it possible that this badass coach has never even gotten a sniff as a Finalist for Coach of the Year? No aspersions cast on finalists Jamahl Mosley, Chris Finch, or winner Mark Daigneault in this year’s contest. Or to Mike Brown, Monty Williams, Tom Thibodeau, or any of the other winners of the last several years as Malone has made his mark. Each of the winners was deserving, are great coaches, and beat out other finalists who had also had remarkable seasons. But get this… In all of his seasons of improvement and skill-building, Malone has never once even found himself one of the three finalists for this award. Twice now, he’s made it onto the bottom of longer list at year’s end… but by the time of the short list? Nope. Not once. Apparently this Denver Nuggets winning all happens just because the Nuggets lucked into an unexpected MVP, with not another All-Star to be found. How miraculous.

Put another way, this is the guy who soundly outcoached Darvin Ham a couple nights ago to bring his team back from the brink. The one who bested Finch, Williams, Ham, and perpetual Coach of the Year finalist and hoops wunderkind Erik Spoelstra on his way to a ring last year. Make no mistake, even with his ultra-talented team, Malone outcoached them all. How on earth is this guy, with those stats not even in the running? The coach that has repeatedly talked 18 young-ish men into believing in this as family. That has Murray and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (not to mention the best player on the planet in Nikola Jokic) all declaring themselves Nuggets for life. How convenient for Malone that all just fell into place.

For many of us, Mike just doesn’t get his due. Just like several of his players. So, to paraphrase several of Malone’s postgame speeches regarding Jokic and Murray and so many more the last couple of years… Here’s one Nuggets fan’s take on Moach.

There are several great coaches in and around this league, but if you look at these Denver Nuggets, we as fans, players, and an organization know what we have. Know how valuable and meaningful and impactful one Michael Malone is, and can be. We think he’s the best in the league not just due to the stats that back him up, but also the heart he wears on his sleeve, the head he claims “isn’t the smartest”, and the courage with which he stands up to situation after situation. For the belief, trust, and brotherhood he has fostered in some of the best Denver Nuggets teams we’ve ever seen. While he may not see the love for his incredible work very much outside of Colorado, at altitude, we’re well aware there isn’t a better coach in the business, and wouldn’t trade him for any of them. For all of them.

Not nearly as well said as any of Coach’s take on his transcendent stars, or the remarkable team he and others have built into a juggernaut, and hopefully into a dynasty. He brought the Nuggets their first ring, and he loves Colorado like he was born in Aurora, not Astoria. Love. That. Guy.

Michael Malone. Moach of the Year.