Give The Gameplan A Chance

Mike Malone's two questions before making adjustments

Author

Cody Royle
April 17, 2025 • Reading Time: 2 minutes

Last week, the Denver Nuggets fired head coach Mike Malone just three games before the NBA playoffs.

Malone holds the franchise record for wins, and is their only championship winning coach in history.

And it was during the Nuggets’ 2023 championship run that Malone dropped a piece of coaching craft that we can all learn from.

Asked a question about making in-game adjustments, Malone offered this response:

“Before you make an adjustment, you have to ask yourself two questions:

1. Are we executing the gameplan correctly, and;

2. Are we doing it with energy and force?

[You can’t just rush to say] we need to adjust…you never game the damned gameplan a chance to work in the first place.”

Mike Malone

If you’ve done your work properly as a coach, every gameplan you devise should give your team the maximum opportunity to beat your opponent.

Which begs the question why you wouldn’t give that plan ample opportunity to play out.

It’s true that no plan survives contact with the enemy, but it’s also true that a leader who deviates from the plan upon contact with the enemy erodes trust in their work.

Are we doing it? And are we doing it with energy and force?

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