Earlier today it was announced that Denver Nuggets Head Coach Michael Malone has entered the health and safety protocol. This isn’t the first time that COVID-19 has affected the Denver Nuggets this season, with Bones Hyland, Jamal Murray, and Nikola Jokic all spending time away from the team for health and safety reasons this season.
Head Coach Michael Malone has entered a health and safety protocol.
David Adelman will be the Head Coach for tonight’s game vs. Portland.
– Denver Nuggets (@nuggets) January 17, 2023
The team also announced that Assistant Coach David Adelman will serve as Head Coach for tonight’s game against Portland. That could be the case for any game that Michael Malone misses, with Wednesday night’s game against the Timberwolves likely to miss Malone as well.
While there’s no timeline for his return, as with health and safety, it’s possible he’ll be healthy in five to ten days based on some of the cases the league has seen this season. Over the next five days the Nuggets play three games – tonight against the Portland Trailblazers, Wednesday against the Minnesota Timberwolves, and Friday against the Indiana Pacers. Everything is played at home.
If Michael Malone were to miss a week, he would still be at home for games against the Oklahoma City Thunder and Milwaukee Bucks. Both are at home again. There is also a chance that if he misses more than that he may miss a few more games in ten days than in five or seven days.
Currently, the Denver Nuggets are 16-3 in their last 19 games, 8-2 in their last 10, and are on a 6 game winning streak. Part of that can be attributed to Michael Malone who has put himself in the conversation for Coach of the Year. Fans will see in the next few games what a team without Coach Malone will look like, but either way we at the Denver Stiffs wish him a speedy and safe recovery.
