In Denver, we never had the habit of panicking after two or three defeats in a row. The Nuggets' foundations are solid, and we know that an NBA season is full of ups and downs. But now, Nikola Jokic's teammates missed their preseason, and they started the regular season with two home victories.
Result: Mike Malone is already sounding the alarm after the defeat against the Clippers.
“Norman Powell smashed us in the 4th quarter… We continued to make fouls on the shooters. It's a lack of discipline.” castigates the coach. “It's worrying because the same guys are making the same mistakes over and over again. And if a guy is known for coming off screens, we can't let him keep shooting 3-pointers. »
The shadow of Kentavious Caldwell-Pope looms
But the Denver coach also makes his mea culpa. “But like I told our team, when a guy has a fourth quarter like that, it's on me to make sure we do something to take the ball out of his hands. And I didn't do it. So I take responsibility for it and I have to do better.”
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope gone, the Nuggets no longer have a “stopper” on the outside lines. They also no longer have a 3-point shooting specialist. This famous “3&D” that everyone is looking for. If Nikola Jokic displays a nice 8 out of 15 at 3-points after two matches, all of his teammates combine a terrible 13 out of 58!
“I know everyone tells us to take shots, but before that, I think the way we stop the game is horrible” he continues. “You have to find the guys in the corners. We have to open the ground. You must use the entire width and length of the land. We need to be more organized, especially our 'second unit'.”
Russell Westbrook at 2 of 18 on shots in two matches
A “second unit” led by a catastrophic Russell Westbrook: 0 out of 8 on shots! Against the Thunder, he had already signed an already very ugly 2 out of 10 on shots. Certainly, he remains energetic, and he showed aggressiveness in defense, and he displays a cumulative +/- of -37 (-24 then -13) over the first two meetings…
Each passage of the substitutes thus weighs down the Nuggets, and Mike Malone was forced to make his holders play as much as possible. With fatigue helping, like Jamal Murray, the Nuggets are cracked at the end.
“We were really soft with the ball in hand” regrets Mike Malone. “We only lost 10 balls in the match, but in the 4th quarter, we lost 3 which gave them 7 points. We can't lose balls that give them easy baskets behind. This is what killed us. »
