Nikola Jokic, Aaron Gordon Show Support for Nuggets HC Adelman after NBA Playoff exit

Denver Nugget's superstar Nikola Jokić praised the interim head coach David Adelman after the team in game 7 of their second round playoff series had a defeat of 125-93 against the Oklahoma City Thunder.

“I think he changed the energy,” said Jokić after the game. “I think the boys were woken up a bit, boys had more energy. He made us believe something.”

“I think he did a really good job,” he added.

Adelman took over the head coach from Denver after the Michael Malone team released with only three games in the regular season.

The striker of Nuggets, Aaron Gordon, also expressed his support for Adelman and supported him as a full-time coach for the 2025-26 season.

“I love there,” said Gordon on Sunday. “I hope he is here next year. I hope he is our trainer. I hope he gets an entire training camp and a whole off -season and an entire training camp to find out his philosophy. I had there in Orlando. We have there. He is great. He was excellent for us and I hope that he will be here next year.”

Nugget's governor Josh Kroenke decided not to address the position of the head coach directly after the game, but was impressed by Denvers Finish under Adelman.

“Outside the championship, this is the proudest I was because these boys really gathered,” Kroenke told Tim Macmahon from ESPN after the game.

Shooting Malone was a surprise when the coach won a championship with Denver in 2023. The Nuggets were also at 47-32 when the team decided to separate from him.

According to reports, the players were “miserable” under Malone before the decision was made.

Under Adelman, the Nuggets won their last three games of the regular season before scoring the playoff series in seven games in the first round against the Los Angeles Clipper.

While Denver was ultimately eliminated by Oklahoma City, it was an admirable performance against a Thunder squad that was 68-14 and the league went up and down with an impressive plus-14-netto rating (via NBA.com).

Adelman also seems to support the changing room in Denvers, since Sam Amick from the sporting reporting that he has drawn from Nuggets players since replacing Malone “Rave Reviews”.

The first head coach could be back with the organization next season if Denver has the same trust in him that Jokić and Gordon do.