ESPN NBA insider Shams Charania reported on Thursday afternoon that the Denver Nuggets and David Adelman agreed to a deal to make the longtime assistant the team's new head coach. He became the interim head coach with three regular-season games remaining after Josh Kroenke fired Michael Malone and GM Calvin Booth.
Adelman led the Nuggets to three consecutive wins to end the regular season, securing the No. 4 seed in the West. Many people speculated that the playoffs would be Adelman's "audition" to become the team's next head coach. He made it through the first round as the Nuggets won Game 7 over the Clippers, but they couldn't recreate that same magic in the semifinals. Denver's season ended with a Game 7 loss to Oklahoma City on Sunday.
Following the game, ESPN's Tim MacMahon reported that [Adelman was a "strong candidate"](https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/45215850/nuggets-coach-david-adelman-earns-praise-backing-players) to become the team's next head coach. It became official four days later.
David Adelman agrees to deal to become Nuggets' next head coach
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The writing was on the wall that Adelman [would stay in Denver](https://nugglove.com/nuggets-painfully-obvious-coaching-decision-after-thunder-series) and replace Malone, but there was also the chance that the organization would go in a different direction. That didn't seem likely, especially after Adelman stepped in and helped save the season, keeping the Nuggets from falling into the Play-In Tournament.
Everyone was surprised by Malone's firing, but as time passed, it became apparent that Denver was on the brink of collapse. The timing wasn't ideal, but Kroenke felt there was no option but to reinvigorate the locker room.
Adelman joined Malone's staff in 2017, so his familiarity with players and the organization played significantly in his favor. He received endorsements from Aaron Gordon and Michael Porter Jr. after the Nuggets' season-ending loss. Gordon said he hoped Adelman would be Denver's coach next season, and MPJ echoed a similar sentiment.