After the Nuggets won the NBA championship, Malone got a tattoo of Maxie the Miner, one of the Nuggets’ mascots. Michael Diaz, the artist who did the tattoo, hopes Malone will still look back on it with appreciation.
“When people get tattooed like that, it’s more on a personal level with them,” Diaz, the owner of Triple W Tattoos, said. “He brought us our first championship so it’s all in meaning for him. It wasn’t something he just decided one day I’m going to go get Maxie the Miner. He brought us a championship, and he gets to hold that with him. Gets to wear that and hopefully he still wears it proudly.”
“He called me,” Diaz remembered. “And I didn’t believe him. I said, ‘No. You’re lying. I’m not in the mood for a prank call. Who is this?'”
He learned quickly Bowen’s call was no joke when he, another coach and Malone walked into his shop the following week. He said they all got the same tattoo of Maxie the Miner, holding a championship trophy.
“In the beginning, when they first came in, yeah, nerves were crazy,” Diaz said. “As soon as I go into my tattoo mode, it’s all professional from there. I’ve been tattooing long enough to not be nervous while I’m tattooing, no matter who it’s on.”
Diaz, a Denver sports fan, took a photo with Malone and framed his sketches he presented to the coaching staff. He said the news of Malone’s firing stings.
“You know, I’m a little bit salty about it,” Diaz said. “The Nuggets are not having a terrible season. With the contract that he signed, you expect it to be good. Waking up to that, it was terrible. I hate to see anyone lose their job. Let alone somebody I was able to sit with and chat with a few hours you know, on a personal level. It’s upsetting for sure.”
He said he’s not sure if the decision is the right move so close to the playoffs, but he said he’s willing to wait and see if the Nuggets will take home another championship win.
“Hopefully, it was in his best interest, I guess you could say,” Diaz said. “Hopefully, we get a championship again. We’re going into the playoffs and hopefully, it works out for us. I do know he had a close relationship with all the players and I know they’re probably impacted pretty hard. But yeah. Hopefully, they do well. Keep it moving.”
Diaz said he wished the best for Malone in wherever his next steps take him, but he’ll never forget the accomplishments he had in Denver. He hopes Malone doesn’t forget either.
“Hopefully, he moves onto a team that’ll appreciate him the way we did,” Diaz said. “I mean, he is the most winningest coach in Nuggets history. The team that he’s built is like nothing we’ve ever seen out here, you know. It’s a terrible way for him to go out.”
