https://basketball.realgm.com/wiretap/257368/Mike-Malone-Following-Loss-To-Clippers-We-Were-Soft-Tonight-From-Beginning-To-End
Article quotes Malone as saying the Nuggets played soft against the Clippers. It quotes Barton as saying the league considers them soft. Does this surprise anyone? Isn't that code for saying "plays to the level of the competition" and/or "gives just enough effort"?
Intensity - heart - desire --- those are the words that are used of champions. I believe this is all this team is missing.
Playing Soft
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Playing Soft
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NuggetsWY
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Re: Playing Soft
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Maf
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Re: Playing Soft
I don't think playing to level of competition is the case of being soft. Cause I think it is quite contrary. Our players showed some huge balls in games like at Milwaukee who won 14 of their 15 previous games. Or incredible back to back game against Jazz with Nikola and six dwarves. Well sure losing to Cavs or Hawks sucks. But I don't think that showes softness. More like... Lazyness.
I hope Will meant something like when teams go really physical against us we stop moving, cutting, driving, hustling... Surely hope they don't mean we would need some of those stupid meatheads like Bobby Porter or one of the Morris twins.
I hope Will meant something like when teams go really physical against us we stop moving, cutting, driving, hustling... Surely hope they don't mean we would need some of those stupid meatheads like Bobby Porter or one of the Morris twins.
"I never played a game sober, unfortunately" - Keon Clark
"I've never drunk alcohol socially. I've never took cocain socially. I've never smoked anything socially. I did all of this... to got **** up!" - Ozzy Osbourne
"I've never drunk alcohol socially. I've never took cocain socially. I've never smoked anything socially. I did all of this... to got **** up!" - Ozzy Osbourne
Re: Playing Soft
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The Rebel
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Re: Playing Soft
To me being soft has nothing to do with playing down to the competition, it is having someone play rough with you and backing down.
Playing down to the competition is common among teams, and is usually caused by guys not taking the opponent seriously. Mason Plumlee said in a radio interview that when they get a big lead some guys look for their numbers and quit playing defense and working in the offense. I think we can all tell who the main culprit on that is, but that is the reason we lose to bad teams. Once they entire rhythm is off it is hard to get it going again especially against a team struggling to win games who think they finally have a chance.
Being soft is a problem that we do have, but it is not the guys most people expect. Jokic and Murray are not soft, in a weird way they seem to be happier and play better when teams get physical. MPJ is soft, but that is too be expected from a rookie who missed basically the last 2 years, he was not used to college physicality, no way he was ready for the NBA. The 3 worst offenders on the roster are Millsap, Plumlee and Barton and last year Beasley and Morris both had their share of issues not fighting through screens. You could see it last year in the playoffs, when the Spurs and Blazers got physical those guys all disappeared. Millsap would pick his spots and was effective at times, but those other guys did not even give us that much, they were just terrible. The entire Spurs series changed when they stopped getting physical with Jokic and Murray and got physical with everybody else, and the entire Blazers series was like that.
IF you go back and watch the Clippers game you can see it with some guys. They back off on defense, are always a step slow on rotations for help defense, will not set a proper screen to save their lives, and they start shooting jumpshots never cutting or driving into the lane.
I used to want a hot head, like one of the Morris twins, but I don't think that is the real issue. We have to change out the worst offenders, and bring in guys that will either follow Jokic and Murray, or that enjoy the game more when it gets physical.
Playing down to the competition is common among teams, and is usually caused by guys not taking the opponent seriously. Mason Plumlee said in a radio interview that when they get a big lead some guys look for their numbers and quit playing defense and working in the offense. I think we can all tell who the main culprit on that is, but that is the reason we lose to bad teams. Once they entire rhythm is off it is hard to get it going again especially against a team struggling to win games who think they finally have a chance.
Being soft is a problem that we do have, but it is not the guys most people expect. Jokic and Murray are not soft, in a weird way they seem to be happier and play better when teams get physical. MPJ is soft, but that is too be expected from a rookie who missed basically the last 2 years, he was not used to college physicality, no way he was ready for the NBA. The 3 worst offenders on the roster are Millsap, Plumlee and Barton and last year Beasley and Morris both had their share of issues not fighting through screens. You could see it last year in the playoffs, when the Spurs and Blazers got physical those guys all disappeared. Millsap would pick his spots and was effective at times, but those other guys did not even give us that much, they were just terrible. The entire Spurs series changed when they stopped getting physical with Jokic and Murray and got physical with everybody else, and the entire Blazers series was like that.
IF you go back and watch the Clippers game you can see it with some guys. They back off on defense, are always a step slow on rotations for help defense, will not set a proper screen to save their lives, and they start shooting jumpshots never cutting or driving into the lane.
I used to want a hot head, like one of the Morris twins, but I don't think that is the real issue. We have to change out the worst offenders, and bring in guys that will either follow Jokic and Murray, or that enjoy the game more when it gets physical.