Denver Nuggets

Nuggets' Michael Malone making the most of his second chance

Published Jul. 14, 2015 11:05 a.m. ET

foxsports

Michael Malone was one of the most sought-after assistant coaches before he was hired as head coach of the Sacramento Kings. His marriage with the Kings was short-lived, as instability led to his ouster earlier this season. Would his lack of success, despite numerous outside factors, tarnish his image and prevent him from getting another job? As he told Shlomo Sprung of SheridanHoops.com, he learned from his father that that was a very real possibility.

"'To be very honest, I sat out and I looked at my own father,' Malone said. Brendan Malone, Mike’s dad, was the first coach of the Toronto Raptors and was fired by general manager Isiah Thomas in 1996 after just one season on the job. Brendan never got another full-time head coaching job.

'He did a hell of a job and never got another chance,' Malone said. 'So there are only 30 jobs and I wasn’t sure if it was going to happen.'"

Luckily, opportunity presented itself in the form of the Denver Nuggets. Malone overtook interim head coach Melvin Hunt as the leading candidate for the job, and was named coach in June. Malone feels "blessed" to have this second shot at his dream. Now comes the hard part: getting his team to buy into his system, something they didn't do for Brian Shaw.

(h/t Sheridan Hoops)

Photo credit: Chris Humphreys-USA TODAY Sports