NBA coaches fired on playoff-bound teams is a discouraging sign for the profession

But what the firings prove is sometimes even winning is not enough. Memphis and Denver are playoff bound, with a chance at reaching the conference finals. Sure, both had slumps and struggles, but most every playoff team except for Oklahoma City and Cleveland has endured skids.

That teams are firing coaches and entrusting their franchises to interims for playoff runs is unusual and for many coaches, disturbing. If it reveals the first sign of unhappiness or discord in the locker room, the coach is eventually going to shoulder the blame.

How much has Malone changed from two years ago? The championship empowered him, but it should have. He was a made man after that title win over the Heat. But he was blamed by ownership for losing in the Western Conference semifinals last season and a 47-32 record this season despite Jamal Murray and Aaron Gordon missing a combined 46 games.

It’s Malone’s fault he didn’t work wonders with a roster that lost Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Bruce Brown, and Jeff Green from the championship team, and replaced them with a group of youngsters and 36-year-old Russell Westbrook?

Booth helped compile the championship team, but because of ownership’s desires to avoid the second apron, he refrained from significant signings since the title. And three-time MVP Nikola Jokic still has not been paired with a fellow All-Star.

Kroenke decided longtime assistant and aspiring head coach David Adelman, son of former Portland and Sacramento coach and Naismith Hall of Famer Rick Adelman, is ready for a tryout less than a week before the regular season concludes.

The Nuggets won their first two games under Adelman, beating the Kings on the road and the Grizzlies at home. It’s typical for players to become motivated for a new coach, but it will be fascinating to see how Memphis under Tuomas lisalo and the Nuggets under Adelman respond in the playoffs.

Obviously for Jenkins and Malone, winning was not enough. In Malone’s case, it appears malpractice to fire him less than two years after winning a championship.

Denver has never been an attractive free-agent destination and the club has not been dramatically helped by the draft. Christian Braun is a rising prospect who could develop into a cornerstone. Peyton Watson has been slow developing, but has become an impact defender who has improved his shooting.

While both have had their moments, the Nuggets couldn’t build on that title. and Gordon and Murray have battled injuries and inconsistency. Meanwhile, Booth brought on Westbrook, a polarizing player whose desire has never been questioned, and apparently Malone gets blamed for playing him too much.

The game that may have buried Malone is the 140-139 double-overtime loss to the Timberwolves on April 1, in which Westbrook missed a potential clinching layup instead of trying to run out the clock or waiting to be fouled, then fouled a 3-point shooter in frustration at the buzzer in the second overtime.

The issues with Malone are rooted in an unsavory relationship with Booth, who was banking Malone would get the younger players more experience and they would flourish in the postseason. But Malone was essentially set up to fail with Booth adding the much-traveled Dario Saric as the main offseason acquisition. Saric has played in 16 games.

Malone will be a top coaching candidate this summer, when there is expected to be as many as six job openings. He’s a proven winner who is demanding of his players and brutally honest — characteristics that likely cost him his job in Denver.

But firing a coach in the final weeks of the season, especially when the team is playoff bound, is a nasty business that may become more popular if the Grizzlies and Nuggets make deep playoff runs. Every NBA coach knows they are hired to be fired, and it’s hard work to relay the same message differently to avoid complacency.

The removal of Jenkins and Malone are prime examples that it remains a players’ league. When ownership detects dissension or unhappiness, especially with star players, the coach is the first to shoulder the blame. Malone didn’t change his coaching style from his earlier years but his frustration grew because he wasn’t receiving the desired results.

So he will take on a new team and get a fresh start, which is probably for the best. But if a coach is 47-32 in a season, the franchise’s all-time winningest coach, and still has to look over his shoulder, that’s a discouraging sign for the profession.

“It’s disappointing,” said Indiana coach Rick Carlisle, president of the NBA Coaches Association. “But teams have the ability to do what they want. And coaches have contracts. But these were head-scratchers.”

Dwight Howard may be one of the more controversial first-ballot Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Famers in recent history. A big man with a stellar start to his career, a dominating defensive force and athletic maven who was a cornerstone for 10 years before his career fizzled out and he turned into a journeyman.

Howard was elected in his first year of eligibility after being an eight-time All-Star, three-time Defensive Player of the Year, and NBA champion. But he spent his last seven years with six teams, considered a relic in the changing NBA where centers became 3-point shooters, not dunkers. Howard is younger than LeBron James and still showed desire for an NBA return.

But he embraced his election.

“This is such an amazing honor,” he said. “I’ve been playing the game of basketball my whole entire life. To make it to heaven, this is the only way I can describe it, it’s such a beautiful thing. This is what you dream for. It’s what you sit at home and shoot basketball all day and all night for, just to make it to basketball heaven.

“I’m just overwhelmed with joy, gratitude, all the emotions, every one. The words cannot describe how this moment feels just to be up on this stage to represent my family, to represent my friends, all the people who have went along with this journey with me — the good, the bad and the ugly. It has all led to being up in the Hall of Fame. So I’m so thankful, the media, every one of you guys have made my life amazing. So thank you guys for that.”

That joy always has been confused with a goofiness and unserious attitude. Howard’s desire to win and dedication to the game was eventually questioned. He asked out of Orlando despite being the franchise cornerstone. He left the Kobe Bryant Lakers to sign with the Rockets. He then was moved from team to team as a backup center, finally winning a title with the 2020 Bubble Lakers, but he was LA’s eighth-leading scorer.

“I don’t think there was any doubts, but I just didn’t think about anything, but I had an amazing career,” Howard said. “I gave 110 percent every time I stepped on the court. When I got the call, it was the best feeling in the world. I think playing basketball for as long as I’ve played, I’ve had to play all positions, from the point guard to center. Each one took time for me to adapt.

“The last part of my career, I was not the main guy on the team. I was the role player, the guy that had to come in, bring a lot of energy, and I had a lot of fun doing that. So my whole career, I just had to adapt to all my surroundings, adapt to everything that was going on. And that takes a lot of dedication, perseverance and a lot of faith in yourself knowing that you can do anything that you put your mind to.”

What hopefully will be appreciated is Howard’s prime years and his longevity. He was always in premium shape. He was one of the best defenders of all time. But as the NBA transformed from a post-heavy game into one where big men became more perimeter-oriented, Howard couldn’t make the full transition, and in his later years many questioned his rebounding numbers as being empty.

Howard has no regrets.

“No matter what the situation was, it led me right to this moment, which is being in the Hall of Fame,” he said. “So I’m grateful that I could say I went through all these different stages of my career — the good, the bad, all the ups and downs, being the star, being the role player, being the bench guy, being the guy that’s just there for energy, all that stuff. It really made me into the Hall of Famer I am today. So I’m very grateful about that.”

Another first-ballot Hall of Famer is Carmelo Anthony, one of the league’s more prolific scorers, a 10-time All-Star, six-time All-NBA, and part of the 75th anniversary team. With his podcast, Anthony has become one of the retired players’ voices of reason, and he’ll take his broadcasting talents to NBC next season.

He was asked about the potential No. 1 overall pick, Cooper Flagg, expected to be one of the more highly touted rookies in the past decade. Flagg was unable to take Duke to the national championship game, but he enjoyed a brilliant freshman season, so much so that several teams are tanking for his services.

“I think what we’re seeing with Cooper is — he has some similarities to the run that I had,” Anthony said of his freshman season at Syracuse that ended with a championship. “I also like to point out, you have to take your hat off to coach [Jon] Scheyer because the way he was able to orchestrate that team and put the pieces around Cooper so he can be able to go out there and flourish and do what he do and become the National Player of the Year.

“I also think in my point in time, in ‘03, Syracuse, yeah, we were a big program, but we were on the downside of things, too. So nobody expected us to go out there with four freshmen being a part of a team to go win a national championship. Again, we were playing just for fun and we were happy to be there and we were happy-go-lucky kids.”

The difference between his run 22 years ago and Flagg’s run to the Final Four is simple: NIL. The players are no longer just kids on scholarships playing for the love of the game. The best ones are highly paid and compensated.

“Now it’s a real business,” Anthony said. “You know you’re coming to school to go to the national championship. You know you’re going to the best situation, which is totally different. On the flipside, from a basketball standpoint, I think what we’ve seen from Cooper, from a skill-set standpoint, I don’t think we’ve seen it in a long time — somebody who can control the game and demand the game in the way he can from all aspects from rebounding, from weakside blocked shots to defense closing out. And he can get a bucket, too, so that adds a little bit more to your game. I just love watching him as a player.”

Anthony said he was impressed Flagg won National Player of the Year as an 18-year-old.

“In college, guys are 26, 27. It’s not like you’re playing against 17-year-olds,” Anthony said. “You’re playing against grown men in college. He had an opportunity to play against the USA Team in practice. You get that experience at 17, 18 years old — I just hope we, you, give him some grace. Give him time to develop a couple years.”

The Pistons could get a major lift late in their first-round playoff series as former lottery pick Jaden Ivey was cleared for basketball activity after breaking his left fibula Jan. 1. Ivey’s recovery has been rapid and the team left open the possibility of a return this season. The club will update his status in two weeks, meaning perhaps a return for a Game 4 or 5 of a first-round series. The Pistons’ playoff seed has yet to be determined, and a season-ending game against the Bucks may decide whether Detroit is the fifth or sixth seed. Ivey was a key contributor before his injury and was enjoying a breakout season under new coach J.B. Bickerstaff … When the Raptors acquired Brandon Ingram and then signed the former No. 2 pick to an extension, they had no intention of playing him this season. He had missed the previous two months in New Orleans with an ankle sprain and the Raptors wanted Ingram to rest his body and improve his ankle condition after years of missing games with injury. Ingram underwent an injection in the ankle this week and he is expected to be ready for next season. Toronto is hoping a quarter of Ingram, , Scottie Barnes, and Immanuel Quickley will lead to a resurgence after a couple of difficult years. The Raptors are guaranteed the league’s seventh-worst record and a 7.5 percent chance at the No. 1 overall pick … The Grizzlies will have to compensate for likely All-Rookie first-team guard Jaylen Wells, who broke his wrist in a scary fall after being undercut on a dunk attempt by Charlotte’s K.J. Simpson. Wells emerged as a starter and a top on-ball defender, one of the reasons Marcus Smart became expendable. Memphis coach Tuomas Iisalo gave Vince Williams the start on Thursday against the Timberwolves and he should fill that spot for the rest of the season. Wells was taken to a local hospital after the injury and had movement in all his extremities. Simpson, who was despondent about the injury, posted an apology on social media … The Kings will be shorthanded for their play-in game against the Mavericks as sharpshooter Malik Monk will miss at least two weeks with a left calf strain. The Kings would have to beat the Mavericks and then the loser of the 7-8 game to reach a playoff series with the top-seeded Thunder.

Gary Washburn is a Globe columnist. He can be reached at gary.washburn@globe.com. Follow him @GwashburnGlobe.