“It’s never a pleasant experience”. Mike Malone didn't really appreciate losing by 45 points to Minnesota in Game 6. It must be said that his Nuggets were badly beaten, and while failing to leave any marks, it remains humiliating. Never has an NBA champion taken such a spanking in the history of the playoffs!
“ They struck first, then a second, then a third…” says the Denver coach. “You have to congratulate them, they did what they had to do to stay alive and come back to Denver for Game 7. It's a disappointing loss, and it always is when you find yourself down 50 points in playoffs. »
No care of the ball
This is only the 5th time in history that a team has lost by 30 points or more in a Game 6. The good news is that three times out of four, the defeated team then won in Game 7. Like the Cavaliers in 2018 against the Pacers, after losing by 34 points in the 6th round.
“Game and 7 remain the two most beautiful words in the world” says Mike Malone, before talking about this 45-point setback. “The lack of attention to the ball was problematic. I said to our guys at halftime, “Guys, if I had told you before the game that Minnesota would shoot 42% from the field and 30% from 3-point range, would you have accepted it? And they all answered in the affirmative. I told them, 'The reason we're getting our butts kicked is because we're not taking care of the ball, you're not getting rebounds and we're playing without physicality and toughness.' »
“I think we led 9-2…”
True to form, Nikola Jokic even laughed about it at a press conference. To a journalist who asked him if he should immediately throw away this defeat, here is what he replied. “I don’t think so… I think we should take it as a very big defeat. They beat us, and they even destroyed us. We have to learn the lesson… In fact, I think we led 9-2, and things weren't looking good for them… And then, there was only one team on the field. It's a big defeat and we have to take it as such. »
For the leader of the Nuggets, we must first congratulate the Wolves. “They kicked our ass!” They were better than us in every area. You have to accept it” he continues. “You don't lose by 45 points every day, and you have to accept that… They were incredible. They don't have the best defense in the NBA by chance. But we also proved that we could have good positions against them. »
