What was Brendan Malone's coaching record? Looking at amazing career of former Cavaliers' coach

Brendan Malone sadly passed away on October 10, aged 81. The former NBA and collegiate coach had a long-standing career on the sidelines and was one of the most respected coaches of his generation due to his knowledge of both the professional and collegiate leagues. Malone was the father of Denver Nuggets championship head coach Mike Malone.

During an NBA career from 1986 to 2016, Malone worked as an NBA assistant and an NBA head coach. The veteran served two years as an assistant with the New York Knicks before seven years as an assistant with the Detroit Pistons.

Malone then took a role as the head coach of the Toronto Raptors, leading them to a 21-61 record and leaving the position at the end of the season. He returned to the Knicks as an assistant, spending four years with the franchise. A move to the Indiana Pacers coaching staff saw the veteran coach spend three years as an assistant before returning to New York for a third time for one season.

Malone then worked with the Cleveland Cavaliers and even assumed a head coaching role for 18 games, winning eight and losing 10. He spent the next five years as an assistant with the Orlando Magic before heading back to the Pistons aged 72, spending two seasons with the team.

Overall, Malone oversaw 100 NBA games, winning 29 of them and losing 71. However, his impact as a high-level assistant coach should not go unnoticed.

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Brendan Malone saw Mike Malone win an NBA Championship

Mike Malone had an elite basketball upbringing. With such a knowledgeable father, it makes sense that he became an NBA head coach. Since taking the reigns of the Denver Nuggets, Malone has led the team to 406 wins and 337 losses in a total of 743 regular-season games.

Malone is also 37-31 in the playoffs since becoming the Nuggets head coach in 2015. While his father, Brenden, could not taste championship success during his time in the NBA, it's fitting that he got to live vicariously through his son as the Nuggets celebrated their championship win with one of the more memorable parades in history.

The Denver Nuggets will now head into the upcoming season looking to retain their status as NBA champions and rely on Nikola Jokic to carry a heavy burden on his shoulders in the coming months. Nevertheless, Denver is still a young roster at the beginning of their championship window. That's why many contending teams made upgrades to their rosters this summer.