- Joined
- May 8, 2002
- Posts
- 1,128,930
- Reaction score
- 59
North Carolina shook the basketball world when it hired former NBA champion head coach Michael Malone.
Malone, who most recently coached the Denver Nuggets from 2015 to 2025, led the franchise to its first and only NBA title and is also the franchise’s all-time winningest coach.
While there will be an adjustment period for Malone as he returns to the college game for the first time in nearly 25 years, current Nuggets head coach — and Malone’s successor — David Adelman is confident North Carolina made the right call in hiring him.
“Super excited for him when I read it,” Adelman said of Malone being hired at UNC. “Very unexpected, just because I hadn’t heard anything about that. But not just the basketball part — which is a historic job to take — but just the cool part of his daughter going to school there and all of the elements to it.”
“Basketball in America has changed with the NIL and college. The hiring processes are different. The coaching pool is different. I just think it’s changed everything. And a guy like him, he’d be perfect for that job. For all of the guys that are here that have known him, we were all super excited. I’m just happy for him and his family. He belongs coaching, and that’s what he should be doing.”
Malone, 54, spent 12 seasons as an NBA head coach with the Sacramento Kings and Nuggets, compiling a 510-394 record. He led Denver for 10 seasons, going 471-327 and delivering the franchise’s first NBA championship in 2023.
Malone left Denver on amicable terms after a power struggle with Nuggets general manager Calvin Booth, a rift that ultimately led to Malone’s firing and, later, Booth’s. Adelman then took control on an interim basis before being promoted full-time.
Malone is the first North Carolina coach without prior playing or coaching experience at the school since Frank McGuire in 1952. His daughter, Bridget, is a member of UNC’s volleyball team.
Follow us @TarHeelsWire on X and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of North Carolina Tar Heels news, notes and opinions.
This article originally appeared on Tar Heels Wire: UNC Basketball: Nuggets coach reacts to Tar Heels hiring Michael Malone
Continue reading...
Malone, who most recently coached the Denver Nuggets from 2015 to 2025, led the franchise to its first and only NBA title and is also the franchise’s all-time winningest coach.
While there will be an adjustment period for Malone as he returns to the college game for the first time in nearly 25 years, current Nuggets head coach — and Malone’s successor — David Adelman is confident North Carolina made the right call in hiring him.
“Super excited for him when I read it,” Adelman said of Malone being hired at UNC. “Very unexpected, just because I hadn’t heard anything about that. But not just the basketball part — which is a historic job to take — but just the cool part of his daughter going to school there and all of the elements to it.”
“Basketball in America has changed with the NIL and college. The hiring processes are different. The coaching pool is different. I just think it’s changed everything. And a guy like him, he’d be perfect for that job. For all of the guys that are here that have known him, we were all super excited. I’m just happy for him and his family. He belongs coaching, and that’s what he should be doing.”
Malone, 54, spent 12 seasons as an NBA head coach with the Sacramento Kings and Nuggets, compiling a 510-394 record. He led Denver for 10 seasons, going 471-327 and delivering the franchise’s first NBA championship in 2023.
Malone left Denver on amicable terms after a power struggle with Nuggets general manager Calvin Booth, a rift that ultimately led to Malone’s firing and, later, Booth’s. Adelman then took control on an interim basis before being promoted full-time.
Malone is the first North Carolina coach without prior playing or coaching experience at the school since Frank McGuire in 1952. His daughter, Bridget, is a member of UNC’s volleyball team.
Follow us @TarHeelsWire on X and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of North Carolina Tar Heels news, notes and opinions.
This article originally appeared on Tar Heels Wire: UNC Basketball: Nuggets coach reacts to Tar Heels hiring Michael Malone
Continue reading...
