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The Denver Nuggets and interim head coach David Adelman have agreed to a deal to make him the team's full-time head coach, sources with knowledge of the situation confirmed to ESPN's Shams Charania on Thursday (May 22).
Adelman, 44, who took over after the sudden firing of Michael Malone, went 3-0 during the Nuggets' final regular season games and a first-round playoff series win against the Los Angeles Clippers before being eliminated by the top-seed Oklahoma City Thunder in the Western Conference Semifinals.
"The Denver Nuggets and interim David Adelman have agreed on a deal to make Adelman the franchise's next head coach, sources tell ESPN. Adelman went 3-0 in regular season after taking over for Michael Malone and won a playoff series, leading Denver to one win from the West finals," Charania wrote on his X account. "Nuggets were impressed with Adelman's work as interim coach and moved forward swiftly with him as the full-time coach, sources said. Denver will take a period of time now after the season to sort through its general manager hire."
Adelman joined the Nuggets staff as an assistant prior to the 2017-18 season, having held the same position with the Orlando Magic during the 2016-2017 season. The 44-year-old began his NBA career as a player development/assistant for the Minnesota Timberwolves, initially under his father, then-head coach Rick Adelman, from 2011 to 2014, as well as the late Flip Saunders in 2015 and Sam Mitchell in 2016.