The Drive

In hour 3 of The Drive, Zach and Phil react to ESPN’s Jordan Reid’s report that the Broncos could wait until round two to select their running back in a deep class. Is there room to improve in the Broncos safety room? What did the guys make of the “new look Nuggets” in their first game after the Malone firing? Did Jokic take a step forward as an on-court leader? We hear from Nuggets interim coach, David Adalman and his thoughts on the players taking ownership of their performance. What have the guys liked about Adelman’s differences he’s made so far? We react to the reports of Michael Malone giving Russell Westbrook special treatment. Which Nuggets player would not have liked Malone giving Westbrook preferential treatment? Phil relates it to his time with the Broncos when the coaching staff kept giving a player opportunities despite making mistake after mistake. Is this just the tip of the iceberg of stories coming out the Nuggets locker room? The guys react to an AI service predicting the next 10 national champions in college football, which features CU creating a dynasty with three straight championships in the late 2020’s.

In hour 4 of The Drive, Zach and Phil continue to react to the Nuggets firing of Michael Malone. What message did the firings send to the players in the locker room? Has “the beast been awoken” in the Denver Nuggets? Could this change in coach, spark the Nuggets to make a run in the playoffs? What initial changes did we see from the Nuggets last night? Could we see a reunion between the Nuggets and Tim Connely? Would Nuggets ownership be willing to open up the checkbook and pay for an elite executive like Connely? We are counting down the top 30 stories in the last 30 years of Denver sports and today’s “Mile High Milestone” features “Tebowmania”. Zach and Phil detail the Tebow timeline in Denver, the ups and downs, and everything in between. Just how big did the Tebow story get around the country? We wrap up the show with the biggest stories in Denver sports. Which Nugget didn’t agree with the way Malone treated Russell Westbrook?

Hour 1 of The Drive kicks off with Zach and Phil cross talking with Dover and Cecil. The guys discuss if Nuggets ownership should make a public appearance and hold a press conference for Denver media. Are the Nuggets still capable of making a run in the playoffs if they can get healthy? Did we see a disconnected Nuggets team dating back to the off season, knowing many of their players didn’t stay in Denver over the summer?  Zach and Phil speak to how important the Nuggets next hire will be. Is the Nuggets next general manager and head coach hires, the most important hires in Denver sports history? With the draft around the corner, the guys react to ESPN’s Mel Kiper’s most recent mock draft with projects the Broncos selecting Arizona wide receiver McMillan in the first round. How would the guys feel about the Broncos putting running back on the back burner and drafting a position of luxury?

In hour 2 of The Drive, Zach and Phil ask if the Avalanche head coach, Jared Bednar could be on the hot seat based on what just saw with the Nuggets. Could a first-round exit from the Avs lead them to fire Bednar? With the Avs opponent most likely being Dallas, would the Avs be favorites over the Stars? We pivot to the Nuggets and Zach shares inside information he got which details the dynamic between the general manager and head coach. We hear from Michael Malone from Nuggets media day before the season started. When did the fracture between the front office and coaching staff start? We give example after example of the dysfunction between Booth and Malone. Today’s “Three Count” features the high ratings from the national basketball championship, Zac Veen getting a bunt single in his major league debut, and Alvin Kamara making an appearance at CU’s football practice. We are counting down the top 30 moments in the last 30 years of Denver sports, today’s “Mile High Milestone” features the Broncos signing Peyton Manning.

In hour 3 of The Drive, Zach and Phil preview the Nuggets and Kings game tonight. What kind of performance are we expecting from the Nuggets tonight? Will they be “shell shocked”? Will the Nuggets defense continue to struggle? Will we see new rotations from the Nuggets tonight? Phil shares about how the Nuggets will play loose tonight and compares it to his time with the Colts when they had an interim coach. Zach and Phil speak to how important the Nuggets next hire will be. Could we see Jokic get frustrated with his situation in Denver and ask for a trade out? What are the next steps to making sure Jokic is content and wants to be with the team long term? Are we on the verge of seeing something we thought was impossible in sports? Will Gabe Landeskog suit up for the Colorado Eagles this weekend? Would Landeskog playing well for the Eagles, give the guys enough confidence in Landy to join the Avs for a playoff run? We react to Mel Kiper’s most recent mock draft which projects the Broncos selecting a wide receiver in the first round.

In hour 4 of The Drive, Zach and Phil ask if the Avalanche head coach, Jared Bednar could be on the hot seat based on what just saw with the Nuggets. Could a first-round exit from the Avs lead them to fire Bednar? We pivot to the Nuggets and Zach shares inside information he got which details the dynamic between the general manager and head coach. We hear from Michael Malone from Nuggets media day before the season started. When did the fracture between the front office and coaching staff start? We give example after example of the dysfunction between Booth and Malone. We listen to a clip from Ryen Russillo suggesting Jokic could look around the Nuggets roster and be the first European player to force his way out of a team. What creative moves could the next general manager do to surround Jokic with better talent? We wrap up the show with recapping the biggest stories in Denver sports today and predicting the Nuggets and Kings game tonight.

Hour 1 of the Drive kicks off with Zach and Phil cross talking with Dover and Cecil. The guys react to the breaking news of Nuggets coach, Michael Malone getting fired from the organization. Did the division between Malone and Booth lead to the erosion of the Nuggets culture? Zach details the moments that led to this decision including a weird dynamic at media day and visible frustration and fighting between the players. Why now did Nuggets ownership decide to make a move with their head coach and general manager? Being that Michael Malone is the greatest coach in Nuggets history and overachieved every year did Malone get a raw deal? Did Nuggets star Nikola Jokic have a say in the Nuggets decision to fire their coach? Who should Jokic be most frustrated with in the organization?

In hour 2 of The Drive, Zach and Phil take a deeper look at the Nuggets decision to cut ties with GM, Calvin Booth. Did the Nuggets lose their culture when their old GM, Tim Connely took a job with the Minnesota Timberwolves? ESPN’s Tim Bontemps joins the show to discuss the surprising news of the Nuggets firing both their coach and GM, how flawed the Nuggets roster is, and if we will see more moves from the Nuggets regarding the roster. Today’s “Three Count” includes different audio cutes from national sporter personailities including Brian Windhorst, Shams Charnia, and Ramona Shelburne. What is the plan for the Nuggets moving forward? Did Michael Malone and Calvin Booth ever have a relationship? Did one specific interaction lead to the Nuggets clearing house? DenverSports.com’s Jake Shapiro joins the show to discuss why the Nuggets decided now was the time to fire Michael Malone, if Malone lost the locker room, and how the Nuggets lost their culture.

In hour 3 of The Drive, Zach and Phil run down the list of names that could be potential coach or general manger fits for the Nuggets. Could former Warriors GM, Bob Meyers be a candidate for the Nuggets? Should the Nuggets go with a championship level winning, proven coach or an outside hire that is up and coming? Could a former player, similar to JJ Reddick be on the table to be the next Nuggets coach? Phil walks us through what his experience was like when his NFL coach was fired during the season. We hear from Josh Kroenke and his thought process on the major shake up within the Nuggets franchise. Was there one moment that led the Nuggets to firing both Calvin Booth and Michael Malone? ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne joins the show to discuss how surprising it was to see both Malone and Booth be let go by the Nuggets, the timing of the Nuggets decision, and how the Nuggets lost their culture in the locker room.

In hour 4 of The Drive, Zach and Phil detail all the division between Nuggets coach Michael Malone and GM, Calvin Booth. Was either guy right that the Nuggets should be playing the young players more or veterans more? Zach lists all the moves Calvin Booth has made while with the Nuggets, good and bad. Can the Nuggets still maximize “the Jokic window” and build a championship contender? Will the Nuggets interim head coach be able to prove he deserves a chance to be the head coach next season? Zach gives a warning to Nuggets fans that they shouldn’t assume Jokic will be a life lone Nugget. DenverSports.com’s Will Petersen joins the show to discuss his thoughts on the firings of Michael Malone and Calvin Booth. We wrap up the show with the biggest story lines in Denver sports today. Will Michael Malone have another head coaching job in the NBA? Will Calvin Booth step into another general manager job?