Brian Shaw fired as Nuggets’ coach; Melvin Hunt named interim head coach

Nuggets general manager Tim Connelly had maintained through the team’s struggles that Brian Shaw would be his coach through the rest of the season.

On Tuesday morning, however, he fired Shaw and replaced him with assistant coach Melvin Hunt for the rest of the season.

“Today was a tough day, removing Brian from the head-coaching spot,” Connelly said Tuesday evening at Pepsi Center. “Can’t say enough about him personally. Fantastic guy, one of the brightest basketball minds I’ve ever been around. I learned a ton. Unfortunately, the nature of our business is results-oriented and we thought today was the time to make a change. Melvin’s going to be our interim coach the rest of the year, he’s going to finish out the last six weeks.”

Asked what prompted the move, Connelly said, “It was a culmination of a ton of things. Given our recent lack of success, we thought it was time to be proactive.”

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The Nuggets were 2-19 in their last 21 games, losing by average of more than 11 points a game in that stretch.

“There’s always a million factors but ultimately we’re judged by wins and losses,” Connelly said. “It wasn’t one specific thing. We were hopeful we could dig ourselves out of our hole.”

Connelly said a coaching search would start at season’s end.

“We’re behind Melvin as he completes the season, but we won’t readdress the longterm head-coaching job until the postseason,” he said. “I think we have a lot of problems. I wouldn’t pinpoint one or another. I think when you lose your words become a little more intense, a little more obvious. But I wouldn’t pinpoint one or another.”

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Also let go were assistant coaches Lester Conner and Chris Farr, leaving Patrick Mutombo and Noel Gillespie as Hunt’s main assistants.

News of Shaw’s firing came days after Connelly said Shaw was “absolutely” safe as the team’s coach for the remainder of the season.

The Nuggets have struggled since Shaw arrived in June 2013 as a first-year head coach. A string of injuries to many of the team’s key players contributed to a 36-46 record, the team’s worst in 11 years, a season ago.

This season, the team regained its health but has failed to live up to expectations when the season opened, sporting a 20-39 record. Shaw leaves Denver with a 56-85 (.397) record.

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Shaw was hired in 2013 to replace George Karl, the reigning NBA Coach of the Year who was let go after leading the team to a 57-25 record and guiding the Nuggets to the playoffs every season since he was hired in 2005.

Shaw, who retired as a player in 2003, joined the Lakers as a scout and then assistant under Phil Jackson. He went on to be an assistant at Indiana, where he was promoted to associate head coach and pegged as one of the up-and-coming head-coaching candidates.

Hunt is in his fifth season as an assistant with the Nuggets. Prior to arriving in Denver, Hunt spent five years as an assistant with the Cavaliers, one with the Lakers and five with the Rockets.

Christopher Dempsey: cdempsey@denverpost.com or twitter.com/dempseypost

Originally Published: March 3, 2015 at 3:28 AM MST