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Nuggets Officially Fire Head Coach Brian Shaw
Updated15 Oct 2021
The Denver Nuggets have relieved Brian Shaw of his head coaching duties, General Manager and Executive Vice President of Basketball Operations Tim Connelly announced today. Additionally, Melvin Hunt has been named interim head coach for the remainder of the season.
“I want to sincerely thank Brian for his time with our organization,” said Connelly. “You won’t find a better guy than Brian and he is one of the brightest basketball minds I’ve ever been around. Unfortunately things didn’t go as we hoped, but we know with his basketball acumen that he has a very bright future ahead of him.”
Shaw was hired as head coach of the Nuggets on June 25, 2013 and in one-plus season he compiled a record of 56-85 (.397).
“On behalf of everyone in the Denver Nuggets organization, I would personally like to thank Brian for his services the past two seasons in Denver. He is a champion and a gentleman and I wish him nothing but the best for himself and his family moving forward. Since we purchased the franchise in 2000 we have constantly strived to field a competitive team, culminating in 10 straight playoff appearances and a franchise record 57 wins in the 2012-13 regular season. Expectations have been raised and we want more.
“This season our management staff has remained patient and supportive as decisions of this nature are never taken lightly. Patience is encouraged, as long as the organization continues to show progress toward a greater goal. However, competing for championships is our goal, and therefore we decided to make this decision now and look forward to conducting an extensive head coaching search upon the season’s conclusion. This has been a trying season for all of us, and we appreciate Nuggets fans continued faith and patience as we build our proud organization back to the NBA’s elite.”
Hunt is in his fifth season as an assistant coach with the Nuggets. He came to Denver after spending five years as an assistant coach with the Cleveland Cavaliers (2005-2010). Prior to that he spent one season as an assistant with the Los Angeles Lakers and five seasons in various capacities with the Houston Rockets.
