SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- Following a chaotic 30-plus hours for the Denver Nuggets franchise, David Adelman met with reporters for the first time as the interim head coach, eager to remind everyone what the team is still capable of doing.
Then three-time MVP Nikola Jokic delivered his 33rd triple-double with 20 points, 12 rebounds and 11 assists to help the Nuggets snap a four-game losing streak with a 124-116 victory over the Sacramento Kings at the Golden 1 Center.
The much-needed win came just a day after the Nuggets stunningly fired coach Michael Malone and parted ways with general manager Calvin Booth in hopes of giving Denver a shot in the arm.
Speaking for the first time since the only NBA head coach he had ever had was fired, Jokic said Josh Kroenke, vice chairman of Kroenke Sports and Entertainment, informed him of the move before most knew of the decision. Jokic didn't want to go into detail about that conversation.
"I knew a little bit before everybody," Jokic said after the game. "And he told me, 'We made a decision.' So it was not a discussion. It was a decision. He told me why. And so I listened. And I accepted it. I'm not going to tell you what he told me. I'm going to keep that private."
Adelman, the architect of the Nuggets' offense, said he and Kroenke met with the team. On Kroenke's message to the team, Adelman said it was to "be better."
Jokic and the Nuggets' locker room certainly felt the jolt that ownership was looking to deliver by moving on from the coach and general manager who oversaw Denver's only NBA championship in 2023.
"I mean, when someone wants to make [a personnel change] or change energy, that's probably what they do," the Serbian center said. "In my country, if someone get fired, [the] word is probably you are the next [one to go].
"... I mean if you want to change something, that's how [they] do it, and the owner wanted to do it."
Ownership opted to fire Malone with three games remaining in the season and to not extend Booth's contract after the team had been struggling.
Sources said a long rift between Malone and Booth grew into a "cold war" over matters such as playing and developing younger players in the rotation in the second unit. Also, since the All-Star break, the Nuggets are 12-13. Sources said ownership wanted to make the change because the vibes were poor and the locker room wasn't responding, particularly on defense, which had taken a dip.
Players such as Jokic and Aaron Gordon have displayed visible frustration in recent losses on the sideline. Malone, though, did have to deal with injuries to key players such as Jamal Murray, who missed his sixth straight game Tuesday with a hamstring injury, and Gordon, who missed time with a calf injury earlier this season.
Malone was 471-327 and won the NBA championship during a 2022-23 season that saw him provide the team with a strong voice and toughness. Booth made key moves such as drafting Christian Braun and trading for Kentavious Caldwell-Pope in his first summer as general manager entering the championship season.
"I texted to him," Jokic said of Malone. "It was a 10-year relationship, so it was heavy day for everybody, probably especially for him and his family. But I would say it's part of the business."
Sources said ownership made the moves hoping to make the most of what is remaining of this season for Jokic and give the superstar a chance to turn things around and make a deep postseason run.
"We are in the mix here, and I think people forget that," Adelman said before the game. "[Pundits] keep thinking that we didn't make the playoffs or whatever. We still have a great chance to do something special. We talked about that. The guys seemed convinced."
The Nuggets (48-32) responded with all five starters scoring in double figures to give Adelman his first win as interim coach in Sacramento, where his father, Rick, spent eight seasons as head coach.
Adelman, 43, had been a Nuggets assistant coach for eight seasons. He spent time during his first news conference thanking his predecessor.
"What he did for this team, best coach in history," Adelman said. "Can't argue it. Percentage-wise, wins, Finals, championship. The experience he gave me, eight years allowing me to grow as a coach ... all the guys on this coaching staff that are here, we've been together for a long time. ... I look at it as a hell of a run, and [Malone's] not done. So honored to work for the guy and honored to take this seat and do the best I can."
Adelman said before the game that the "overall vibe" needed to improve. Having been around his father, a Hall of Fame coach, at stops in Portland and Sacramento, Adelman knows how things can change quickly.
"I do think it's on the room to start to rely on each other in a more positive way, and constructive criticism is good," Adelman said. "But I think there's got to be a better way to communicate with our group, and that, I think, will lead to better play."
After facing the Kings, the Nuggets play the Memphis Grizzlies at home before finishing the regular season at the Houston Rockets. Denver is fourth in the Western Conference but still could slip into the play-in tournament.
"We can't dwell on it," Porter said of Malone's firing. "It is shocking. It was a surprise to all of us, but our job is to go out there and play basketball and get ready for the playoffs. So I appreciate everything Coach Malone has done for me. Sent him a text, but can't dwell on any of that stuff.
"... We've been through a lot. ... We're a resilient group. We're going to take on the challenge going into these next couple games, going into the playoffs, and I think you're going to see the best version of us that you've seen this year."
Ownership is hoping its seismic decision will catapult the Nuggets on another deep run. It will also get a closer look at Adelman, who interviewed for head coaching vacancies last year such as that of the Los Angeles Lakers.
"He's going to keep it probably real," Jokic said of Adelman's style. "He's going to tell you what he wants and probably in the most simplest way possible. 'So do this.' And he's going to probably show you too, probably in some smart-ass way. But maybe that's the way."
Jokic said Wednesday was a good start in Sacramento.
"I mean probably we will figure it out," Jokic said of getting back on track. "I mean, we always figure it out. Last 10 years, we figured it out.
"Maybe [the] owner saw something else, and he wanted to change it."