Brian Shaw was hired as the coach of the Denver Nuggets on Monday night, securing his first NBA head-coaching job after nearly a decade as an assistant.

Shaw confirmed he had been hired by Denver in an interview with ESPNLosAngeles.com's Ramona Shelburne.

"I'm so appreciative for the opportunity to be able to lead this team and for the faith that [Nuggets team president] Josh Kroenke and [general manager] Tim Connelly have put in me," Shaw told Shelburne. "It's been a long time coming. I've been prepared by the best of the best for a long time. I'm just really looking forward to it."

Shaw will replace George Karl, the NBA's reigning Coach of the Year who led the Nuggets to a 57-win regular season but was fired following Denver's opening-round elimination in the playoffs.

"I look at the positive things that they did, the things they did well under George Karl, and try to continue to build on those," Shaw said. "And in some of the areas where they could use improvement, try to improve in those areas. I want to put my own spin on things, push the right buttons and find the right combinations."

The Denver Post reported earlier Monday that the Nuggets agreed to hire Shaw, one of the more coveted coaching candidates this offseason.

Citing a league source, the Post reported that the Nuggets chose Shaw over former Memphis Grizzlies coach Lionel Hollins, who was Denver's other top candidate.

Shaw, 47, has never held a head-coaching position in the NBA. After six seasons as an assistant to Phil Jackson with the Los Angeles Lakers, Shaw spent the past two seasons as an associate head coach with the Indiana Pacers.