“Let’s talk about effort. It’s the NBA Finals, and we have to talk about effort. This is one of my concerns! »
That’s how Mike Malone began his post-game press conference as his team, which led by 15 points in the second quarter and 8 late in the third, imploded mid-air in a final quarter dominated head and shoulders by Miami (36-25).
“It’s been twice that we have not been good in the last quarter”
“Everything started to turn sour at the start of the fourth quarter. Our defense had been quite efficient until then, we had kept them at 43% in shooting but in the last quarter, we conceded 36 points at 69% success rate. railed the coach of the Nuggets, very frustrated. “It’s not going to do it. It’s been twice that we haven’t been good in the last quarter. »
As in Game 1, Miami started this last period in zone, but with a different alignment than in Game 1, and Denver messed up their basketball. Failing on offense, Denver began to let their guard down on defense, making mistakes and struggling to match their opponent’s level of intensity and toughness.
Mike Malone also pointed to the Heat’s 10-2 to start the game, and their 11 points scored in two minutes and ten seconds after returning from the locker room. For the first time at home during these playoffs, the Nuggets were eaten and listening to their coach is professional misconduct.
“We had players on the pitch who were disappointed not to put in their shots. They thought they could just flip the switch whenever they wanted. It’s not preseason, it’s not regular season. It’s the NBA Finals! It leaves me really perplexed and disappointed” shouted a furious Mike Malone.
While Jamal Murray and Nikola Jokic timidly echoed their coach’s words, it was Jeff Green, playing his veteran role, who added a layer to ensure that the message got across in the locker room but also in front. the general public.
“It’s the fucking Finals!” »
“It’s the fucking Finals!” » he blurted coldly. “Our energy has to be better than what we showed tonight. We have no right to start the match this way, we have to be better. »
This lack of effort and energy has also translated into a lack of discipline. The Heat finished the game with 17 3-pointers at 48% success, largely because Erik Spoelstra’s men were more precise in their positioning on the field, but also because the Nuggets gave them more freedoms.
“They punished us for all our miscommunications. And there were mistakes! Communication problems, lack of rigor on our game plan, oversights on how we should defend certain players… When you have guys like Max Strus, 10 3-point shots attempted. Gabe Vincent, 6. Kevin Love, 6. Duncan Robinson, 3. All of them need to know exactly where they are at all times. If you defend on them, you have to take them to the 4-point line! » groaned Mike Malone again. “We had been lucky during Game 1, tonight, they put in. We just weren’t disciplined enough to win an NBA Finals game. »
“As I said: these are the Finals, that must be enough. I don’t think we need a speech to galvanize us.”
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope was, unfortunately for him, one of the symbols of this lack of discipline. He fouls several times on a player taking a 3-point shot and his six fouls gave Miami 14 free throws for 13, or 70% of all free throws Miami took…
In the locker room, Bruce Brown hinted at a problem of state of mind for the Nuggets for a few days. By dint of hearing that they were at the top of the hierarchy in the NBA world and that they were heading for an easy victory against Miami, they may have let their guard down. Tonight’s loss and Mike Malone’s blower is meant to set the record straight.
“Nothing else needs to be said, I think we got it, especially after tonight” confirmed Jeff Green. “As I said: these are the Finals, that must be enough. I don’t think we need a speech to galvanize us. We know what we will have to do for Game 3.”
And if you ever doubted it, Mike Malone is always there to remind his players what they should do.
“Miami came here and they played a lot harder than us” he summarizes. “If we’re going to go out there and take back control of the series and regain home-field advantage, we’re going to have to play a lot harder than them and our discipline will have to be at its best. »
Interview in Denver.
