Sorting Through Mike Malone’s Latest Comments

Coach Mike Malone’s comments about the Denver Nuggets roster last night are already causing a stir amongst league media. But maybe his comments were made with the best of intentions, just a little off-base.

So… last night was pretty weird, right? If you’re not sure what I’m talking about then I’ll sum it up for you: Last night, the Denver Nuggets lost what was probably a winning game to the Sacramento Kings (you can read more about it in a post by Taylor Hunt, right here). No big deal, those kind of things happen to the best of teams. No, the weird part is what head coach Mike Malone said after the game.

Malone didn’t really hold anything back, criticizing his roster for both a lack of effort on the defensive end, as well as a lack veteran leadership. “It’s a joke right now, we have no leadership. No veteran leadership stepping up. Don’t hear anyone speaking, taking the lead. We have two young guys trying to speak up on the which you applaud, but we some leadership to shine and step up,” Malone said. He later continued, “It’s a losing proposition, offense sells tickets, defense wins championships. Right now, our defense is the worst in the NBA.”

I’ll be the first to admit, that’s pretty harsh to say the least. It’s never a good thing when a team’s head coach openly criticizes his team’s effort and leadership. Especially not a coach of a team whose job isn’t exactly what you would call “stable.” Now if it’s Gregg Popovich or Steve Kerr, then maybe. But it’s rare to see someone in Malone’s position speak-out like this. It should also be noted that veteran forward Danilo Gallinari responded to Mike Malone’s comments: “I don’t agree with that. That’s definitely not the problem.”

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But before you get too ahead of yourselves with the talks of moving on from Mike Malone as the head coach of the Denver Nuggets, I urge you to take a step-back and a collective breath. His comments may have been a little off base, but you have to admit that it was probably meant with the best of intentions. I mean, this team’s defense has been pretty bad as of late.

Don’t get me wrong, Malone should definitely express himself better next time. It was pretty unprofessional to call out almost every veteran on the team for their lack of leadership. Then go and critique almost everyone on the team about their effort. But you have to realize that Mike Malone really hates losing.

That may sound cliché, but it’s not an exaggeration. Malone absolutely despises losing, especially if it happens when his players aren’t playing his brand of basketball. That’s most of why he and DeMarcus Cousins got along so well in Sacramento: they both hate losing.

So, I think it’s fair to say that Malone is just really misunderstood by a lot of people. Not as much as Cousins is… but still. I also think that they both let their passion take control of them at times, so it’s important to remember their purpose for doing so… winning.

I’m not trying to be a Mike Malone apologist here, but I am trying to voice that Malone has the best intentions in mind for this franchise. However, only time will tell if his brand of basketball is one that can fulfill his end goal.