It wasn't that long ago he was introduced as the new Oklahoma City Thunder head coach with confusion and skepticism. Five years later, he's gone from an unknown to a household name. The Coach of the Year winner is now the sixth-longest tenured NBA head coach after Gregg Popovich recently announced his retirement from the San Antonio Spurs job.

The Oklahoma City Thunder now await the Denver Nuggets. Denver ran off the Los Angeles Clippers with an explosive second half, leading to the 120-101 rout Saturday. David Adelman himself acknowledged what lies ahead in the NBA Playoffs.

Since taking over for Michael Malone with three games left in the regular season, Denver’s 43-year-old interim head coach has been attacking his unusual situation with frankness and, when the opportunity presents itself, a sense of humor. After all, his last two weeks have felt almost as improbable as a supernatural “X Files” plot.