On Calvin Booth
Michael Malone was completely justified, and Calvin Booth is the biggest reason why Jokic is forced to play on a depleted roster.
When Denver fired them both, half of the internet tried to act like it was a shared failure. It wasn't. Malone was reacting to the harsh reality of trying to win a championship, while Booth was stuck in an arrogant, idealistic fantasy land.
How Booth Failed Jokic:
The "Cold War" over roster philosophy: Booth refused to sign capable, proven veterans to bolster the bench. Instead, he hoarded unproven, late draft picks and practically forced Malone to develop them during a wide-open championship window. This was an insane risk, considering only about 20% of late draft picks ever develop into functional NBA rotation players.
The disastrous OKC pick manipulation: In his absolute hubris, Booth completely crippled our future assets. He famously traded away a valuable, protected 2029 first-round pick to the Oklahoma City Thunder just to get a package of late/second-round picks. He turned that capital into Julian Strawther, Jalen Pickett, and Hunter Tyson. None of those guys turned into reliable postseason contributors, and Tyson was eventually dumped at the trade deadline to duck the luxury tax.
Crippling our future trade flexibility: Because of the insane rollover protections attached to those OKC pick deals, the Nuggets were legally blocked by the Stepien Rule from trading their 2028 or 2030 first-round picks. He locked us out of the trade market entirely while our title window slammed shut.
Letting crucial talent walk: He sat on his hands while championship pillars like Bruce Brown and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope walked away for absolutely nothing.
Terrible asset management: Giving a premature extension to Zeke Nnaji and guaranteeing multi-year roster spots to unplayable second-round draft picks completely locked up the salary cap.
Arrogance without accountability: In his post-firing media interviews, Booth literally claimed he "made it look too easy" during the 2023 title run, completely ignoring that Tim Connelly built that foundational roster. He even ranked himself in the top 4-5% of NBA front offices. The absolute delusion is staggering.
Malone Faced the Brutal Reality
Malone knew that running a 3000 Elo chess mind like Jokic into the ground for 35+ minutes a night against bottom-tier teams just to stay afloat was completely unsustainable. Malone desperately wanted veterans who understood how to play winning playoff basketball, but Booth handed him a glorified college roster and expected miracles.
We wasted years of the prime of a top-20 player in basketball history because our GM thought he could outsmart the entire league with a cheap draft strategy. Malone was the only one in that front office dynamic who actually fought to give Jokic a real, competitive team.
Booth absolutely destroyed us.