Michael Malone and Jamal Murray’s Anger After Finals Game 2 Loss: ‘It’s Not Preseason’

After losing in the dying moments of Game 2 to the Miami Heat, the Denver Nuggets They had only one word in mind: discipline.

The Coloradoans allowed Miami shot 48.7 percent from the field and 48.6 percent from 3-point range in the 111-108 loss, tying the series at 1. From the start of the contest, the Nuggets seemed to lack focus, a troubling development for a team just three wins away from the first championship in franchise history.

During the postgame media spotlight, Nuggets coach Michael Malone criticized his team’s effort, telling reporters that it was “Great concern for me.”

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“This is not the preseason. This is not the regular season. This is the NBA Finals.”Malone said. “And that, to me, is very, very confusing, disappointing. And I asked the team, I asked our players why we lost. And they knew the answer.”

“Miami came in here and ran us and it was, by far, our least disciplined game in the 16 or 17 playoffs we’ve played. We had so many misses that they took advantage of every one to score.” added.

After missing his 10 field goals in the first game, Max Struss made four 3-pointers in the first quarter of the second game. The Nuggets defenders failed to communicate properly and this allowed the forward to score at will.

“They played hard and, like I said, they were more disciplined.” commented Jamal Murray, who finished with 18 points and 10 assists. “It’s a loss when you give up foul after foul, and they’re not the ones beating you. You’re giving them open layups or open shots.”

“It’s hard to bounce back from that. We just have to stick together and look forward.”

Denver’s defensive woes continued into the fourth quarter. The Miami Heat outshot the Nuggets 36-25, shooting 11-for-16 (68.8%). That’s the third highest percentage of goals in a final quarter of the finals in the last 25 years, according to ESPN Stats.

Malone added that Denver allowed a lot of open 3-pointers in Game 1, but Miami’s players didn’t score. This time, those launches found a good destination.

“It was definitely a lack of communication. And a failure in our game.” Malone assured. “Like I said, we just weren’t as disciplined as we needed to be in an NBA Finals.”

Now, the Nuggets will head to South Beach and try to regain home-court advantage.

The views expressed here do not necessarily represent those of the NBA or its organizations.