Ben Tenzer, interim general manager for the Denver Nuggets, looks on before an NBA basketball game between the Nuggets and the Boston Celtics, March 7, 2024, in Denver. (AAron Ontiveroz/The Denver Post via AP)

DENVER (AP) — Josh Kroenke balked at the word “abnormal” when it was used to describe the Denver Nuggets' new front-office setup.

Instead, he countered with a different choice — unorthodox.

The Nuggets are relying on a unique co-partnership approach between executive vice presidents Ben Tenzer and Jonathan Wallace. It's a way to take advantage of their particular skill sets and elevate a team built around three-time NBA MVP Nikola Jokic.

“Most everything that has gotten us to this point has been unorthodox,” Kroenke, the vice chairman Kroenke Sports and Entertainment, said Tuesday at a news conference to introduce his new front-office staff. “Our best player (Jokic) is the 41st pick — in a very unorthodox manner, the way he plays the game. So everything about us is unorthodox."

Officially, Tenzer is the executive vice president of basketball operations and Wallace the executive VP of player personnel.

Tenzer filled in as interim GM in April when Kroenke made a stunning move by letting go general manager Calvin Booth and head coach Michael Malone with three games left in the regular season. Malone led the Nuggets to their lone NBA title in 2023.

In this new structure, Tenzer figures to oversee the salary cap and team structure, while Wallace takes advantage of the relationships he's formed around the league.

“Synergy and collaboration is always key for every organization,” said Tenzer, who's about to start his 17th season with the organization. “I feel like just us two together, in terms of collaboration, will be really healthy.”

How decisions shake out — free-agent signings, contract extensions, player moves — Kroenke said both will play a role.

“From the outside looking in, sometimes people have a false sense of how things actually go down in the professional sports world,” Kroenke said. “Sometimes, that’s owner talking to owner. Sometimes, that’s president talking to president. That’s basketball operation staff talking to basketball operations staff. There’s a lot of different ways that deals get done in the NBA. A lot of that is through relationships.”

Kroenke brought up a scenario from last summer and the team looking at re-signing Kentavious Caldwell-Pope. Kroenke explained the team wasn't necessarily scared of going into the “second apron,” which is a spending threshold that can restrict roster moves.

But Kroenke added “there are rules around it that we needed to be very careful of with our injury history. The wrong person gets injured, and very quickly, you’re in a scenario where I never want to have to contemplate — that’s trade No. 15.”

No. 15 is, of course, Jokic.

Kroenke also said Tuesday the team definitely plans to offer Jokic a max extension this summer.

“I’m not sure if he’s going to accept it or not, because we’re also going to explain every financial parameter around him signing now versus signing later,” Kroenke said. “Being completely transparent — that’s the way we always are, and then he makes the best decision for himself and his family, and we support it.”

Kroenke vowed to be more hands-on to help with the transition.

“I’m going to be around ... as these guys are assuming their roles, making sure things are moving smoothly,” Kroenke said. “But at a certain point, I’m not saying I let go of the rope, but you have to let people do their jobs. ... I think they complement each other really well.”

One undertaking is to surround their core of Jokic, Jamal Murray, Michael Porter Jr., Aaron Gordon and Christian Braun with more depth. The Nuggets don't have a first-round pick in Wednesday's NBA Draft. They do have high hopes in DaRon Holmes II, a first-round pick last year who missed the entire season after having surgery to repair his Achilles tendon.

“We're always going to look at everything and be aggressive to make the best roster we can," Tenzer said.

And then let coach David Adelman go to work. He was hired last month after stepping in as interim coach when Malone was fired. Adelman guided the Nuggets into the second round, where they lost in seven games to the NBA champion Oklahoma City Thunder.

Wallace certainly knows this Denver team well. He was a scouting coordinator for the Nuggets before spending the last three seasons as the director of player personnel for the Minnesota Timberwolves.

“When these guys are healthy and at their best, they're one of the best starting lineups in the entire league,” Wallace said of the Nuggets.

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