The Denver Nuggets’ firing of Michael Malone and Calvin Booth wasn’t something a lot of NBA fans could have predicted.

Letting go of the head coach and GM with three games left in the regular season and a guaranteed playoff spot on the line is quite unprecedented.

As they say, though, where there’s smoke, there’s fire. The Nuggets haven’t had a smooth season by any metric, despite Nikola Jokic putting up unbelievable numbers yet again.

And in the aftermath of this shocking decision, details of what’s gone on behind the scenes are coming to light.

NBA insider Kevin O’Connor shed some light on the situation in a post on X, writing, “Absolutely nuts. Booth and Malone never liked each other, rarely spoke, and talked behind each other’s backs.

With the team struggling on the court, Nuggets ownership decided to fire both. Insane.

The report makes it sound like the dysfunction within the organization was beyond redemption.

No team can function as it should when there are blatant issues between the head coach and GM, but the fact that the Nuggets decided to get rid of both is quite telling.

Denver Nuggets general manager Calvin Booth speaks to the media before a game against the Orlando Magic at Ball Arena.

Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images

David Adelman has been named as interim coach for the Nuggets, and it’s going to be a significant test for him. Denver has three regular-season games left, they play the Kings, Grizzlies, and Rockets.

The Kings are fighting to clinch the 9th seed, the Grizzlies are 0.5 games behind Denver, and the Rockets are the 2nd seed in the West.

If the situation were truly as terrible as O’Connor reports, then the absence of front office issues might help the team. Nikola Jokic’s triple-double average is unlikely to change either.

Regardless, the team has taken a big risk and it remains to be seen what the consequences will be moving forward.