Most Nuggets fans were happy with the hiring of David Adelman, and I count myself among them. DA was an assistant in Denver for many years and has more than earned his shot. His work down the stretch and in the playoffs as an interim coach only solidified that belief. Keeping him on board offers the perfect balance of change and continuity.
The part of this that I can’t get behind is the timing of it all, and the fact that the team has hired a coach before a GM. We’ve seen this play out time and again around the NBA, and bringing in a GM or POBO to run the team without offering the freedom to handpick the coach rarely, if ever, works out.
The Nuggets just ended a brutal in-house Cold War between Michael Malone and Calvin Booth that sucked the life out of the building. Josh Kroenke has preached how everyone must be on the same page moving forward, but hiring Adelman without a GM flies right in the face of that sentiment.
It’s an odd situation, and one that could easily become uncomfortable at best, and downright prohibitive at worst. Again, I was fully in favor of promoting Adelman to full-time head coach, but I would have loved to find a GM who was fully on board with the move first. The timing of the whole situation could mean a few different things are in play.
Kroenke may still promote interim GM Ben Tenzer
One possibility is that, much like with the Adelman hire, Kroenke will stay in-house and simply promote interim GM Ben Tenzer. Tenzer has been in the organization in some capacity all the way back to 2005 and was formally hired as Director of Team Operations in 2013.
Tenzer would represent more continuity and a familiarity with the current squad that would be unrivaled. This could also explain the hiring of Adelman, as he and Tenzer have worked together for years and should be more than familiar with each other. Promoting both interim hires as a package deal could make a lot of sense. The only question is why wasn’t the Tenzer promotion announced along with the Adelman move?
Kroenke may want to take on a larger role in basketball ops
Another possibility is that Josh Kroenke wants to take on a bigger role, himself. He played basketball in college and has been very involved with the team over the past few months, including during the playoff run, where he was frequently in and around the locker room.
A meddling owner is the last thing fans want, but perhaps if this becomes more of a passion project for Kroenke, he will be willing to invest more time and money into leading this team back to the promised land. This is not an ideal outcome, but perhaps Kroenke promotes Tenzer and names himself President of Basketball Operations, overseeing the decisions.
I wouldn’t love this arrangement, but it could be worth a try, and it would also explain the timing of the Adelman hiring and lack of news around the GM position.
Kroenke didn’t want to risk Adelman getting away
The other possibility in play is that Kroenke doesn’t have a plan yet for his next GM. He has said that he may want to hire from outside for a change, and we’ve already heard rumors about a splash hire like former Warriors architect Bob Myers.
That’s certainly possible and could be exciting, except now there’s the hurdle of convincing Myers, or any potential hire, that they must also sign up to work with Adelman as head coach. Maybe this isn’t a dealbreaker, but someone like Myers is going to have lots of leverage in picking his next job and will almost certainly want to handpick his own coach.
Kroenke may have the stomach to wait for a GM, but not for a coach. Adelman showed a lot in these last few weeks, and the players have spoken very highly of him. He has had head coach interviews the past two offseasons as well. Maybe Kroenke didn’t want to risk any issues with Adelman and figured it was best to just give him the job and figure out the rest later.
That’s not the way you’d normally want to operate, but if losing Adelman was a real fear, the Nuggets may have had no choice. The next GM is a massive hire, as the last steward of Jokic’s prime. It’s not a decision that should be rushed, and in that sense, it’s smart for the team to wait and make sure they’ve got the right guy for the job.