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.
That 4th quarter was special.
🔥 He outscored them 36-25
🔥 11-16 FGM
🔥 9-10 FTM pic.twitter.com/Gq0h5T8fB9
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.
I am a sports journalist who has been writing for a news website since 2015. My work primarily focuses on sports news, but I have also written about other topics such as technology and the arts. I have an extensive background in journalism, having worked as a reporter for a local newspaper before moving to a news website.
Milwaukee Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo He gave a harsh response to the question about a possible trade to another NBA club:
“I’m here. Don’t ask me that question. It’s disrespectful to me and my teammates. I wear this jersey every day.
To say I don’t want to be here is disrespectful to the organization, the coaching staff, myself and everyone who worked hard to get me on the field. Don’t ask me this question. I am her. I’m going out in this uniform. And as long as I’m here, I’ll give it my all until the last second of the match.”
On the night of December 27-28, Antetokounmpo returned to the field after his calf muscle injury and became the most productive player of the game with the Chicago Bulls – 112:103.
I am a sports journalist who has written for various websites and magazines. I currently work as an author at Sportish, a news website that covers sports news. My main focus is writing about soccer, rugby and other sports in the world.
Nine games were played in the NBA regular season on the night of December 27-28.
“San Antonio” hosted “Utah” and suffered a sensational defeat.
Spurs had a good first quarter, during which they made a 15:2 spurt to take an 11-point lead at 30:19, but failed to build on it or at least maintain it. In the second quarter, the Jazz responded with a 25:5 attack and took the lead 62:51 with the same 11 points. Utah then kept the opponent at bay for more than 10 points until the middle of the fourth quarter, when Spurs equalized the score – 106:106, thanks to a 14:2 breakthrough. However, the home team could not achieve this success and failed at the end of the match. In the last three minutes of the game, San Antonio scored 2 points and lost them with a score of 2:11 and had a score of 114:127 throughout the match.
Svyatoslav Mikhayyuk He was in Utah’s starting five and stayed on the field for 14 minutes, during which time he scored 3 points (1/1 three-pointers), also made 1 rebound and 1 assist with 1 loss and 1 foul.
The most productive player of the match was Vembanyama, who brought 32 points to Spurs, but this did not help them achieve positive results. Jazz has 29 points from Markkanen and 28 points from George.
“Chicago” lost at home to “Milwaukee”, where Giannis Antetokounmpo returned.
The Bucks gained a minimal advantage in the first quarter and then gradually increased it, eventually winning all quarters of the match and winning with a score of 103:112.
In this game, Antetokounmpo returned to the field after his calf muscle injury and became the most productive player, scoring 29 points for Milwaukee. Portis also scored a double-double for the guest team with 17 points and 11 rebounds.
NBA. Regular season, December 28
San Antonio – Utah – 114:127 (40:32, 20:38, 27:28, 27:29)
I am a sports journalist who has written for various websites and magazines. I currently work as an author at Sportish, a news website that covers sports news. My main focus is writing about soccer, rugby and other sports in the world.
Nine regular season games took place in the NBA on the night of December 26-27.
Utah hosted the Eastern Conference leader and won a sensational victory.
The first half of the match was spent with a small lead for the Pistons, who kept their opponent one or two shots away most of the time and entered the long break with a 1-point lead at 68:67. The decisive factor in the match was the third quarter; In this quarter, Jazz made a 16:3 move and took the lead by 12 points, 90:78. The home team had the advantage in the score, but Detroit gradually reduced the gap and 19 seconds before the siren, after two free throws by Cunningham, they equalized the score – 129:129. However, the match did not go to overtime – Utah took advantage of the remaining time with the efforts of George, who scored a two-pointer 3 seconds before the siren – 131:129.
Svyatoslav Mikhayyuk He stayed on the field for 21 minutes and recorded 9 points (3/4 two-pointers, 1/2 three-pointers), as well as 4 rebounds, 2 assists and 1 steal.
The most productive player was George, who scored 31 points for Utah, while Nurkic had a double-double with 16 points and 11 rebounds.
orlando: Black (24), Carter (16 + 8 rebounds), Bane (15 + 10 rebounds), Banchero (13), Jones (8) – start; Richardson (14) and Silva (8), Kane (5), Isaac (2), Howard (0), Penda (0), O. Robinson (0).
Charlotte: Ball (22 + 7 rebounds + 6 for loss), Knippel (16), Bridges (16 + 11 rebounds), Miller (15), Diabate (10 + 13 rebounds) – start; Hall (14 + 8 rebounds), Sexton (13), Hall (7), Green (6), Connaughton (1), James (0), Mann (0).
Chicago – Philadelphia – 109:102 (30:28, 19:24, 32:33, 28:17)
I am a sports journalist who has written for various websites and magazines. I currently work as an author at Sportish, a news website that covers sports news. My main focus is writing about soccer, rugby and other sports in the world.
