The Nuggets are tense right now, and especially Nikola Jokic. Annoyed by the refereeing the day before against the Cavaliers, we saw him elbowing against the opposing interior. This night, confirmation of this nervousness with an expulsion just before half-time! Just to join Mike Malone who was expelled about ten minutes earlier…
In fact, the MVP of the last Finals is fed up with being pushed around without the referees saying anything, and last night, he broke down! Jokic’s anger grew over the minutes, and he had already received a technical after five minutes of play against the Pistons.
Then, he continued to taunt the referees, in an attitude worthy of Luka Doncic. And then there was that low post attack, with Marvin Bagley on his back. There is friction, and finally the ball goes into touch, without the referees blowing the whistle. And there, Jokic loses his temper, and the referees whistle his second technical foul, synonymous with expulsion.
“He doesn’t need to apologize.” Aaron Gordon defends him. “There is a foul on him and the referee does not respect the rules. They put both hands on him. They push him. It’s a mistake. When someone’s back is to the basket, you can’t put both hands on him, and they kept doing it. So it’s a mistake, and I understand his frustration. »
Mike Malone prefers to laugh about it
A double expulsion had no effect since the Nuggets snatched the victory (107-103) thanks to the efforts of Reggie Jackson and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope. Proud of his players, Malone explains his expulsion, after getting angry over a foul called against his rookie Julian Streatwther.
“We teach our players to be the first on the ball. To win the balloons lying around. And in this action, Julian was the first on the ball. He did exactly what we asked of him.” explains the Denver coach. “So I congratulate him for trying to win that loose ball. But the refs are the refs, and we move on, and we’re ready to go to Orlando. »
Also asked about the expulsion of Jokic, he quips: “I think Nikola was worried about my well-being. It’s difficult to watch a match on television, and we congratulated each other on the good actions, and I cursed in Serbian on the bad ones. »
