Coach Malone

[NuggetsWY]

Last second shot - first off, as someone else said, the game should have never come down to that shot.
Denver scored just 22 points in both the 1st quarter & the 4th quarter.
Denver scored 30+ in the 3rd & 4th quarters - Washington scored 30+ in those two quarters.
More scoring in the 1st & 4th quarters or more defense in the 2nd & 3rd quarters; it wouldn't have taken much.

Last second shot was a symptom of what is wrong with Denver's offense. Our 3pt shooting percentage is better than the NBA average and we attempt around an NBA average number of 3pt shots per game. The problem is, our guys all want to take the 3pt shot. Just a couple of years ago, they were cutting towards the basket during the game. Now, even during the game, they stand at the 3pt line waiting for their turn to shoot. It carried over to this last play where Morris & Campazzo & Porter were all within a few feet of each other and all waiting for a 3pt shot. It's the mindset of the team - BIG SHOT WANTED!

Everyone admits someone should have cut to the basket, but if the same scenario happens again, we could have the same results because Porter is perhaps our best 3pt shooter, so he'll be behind the line. Campazzo is too short to head to the basket and he's a decent 3pt shooter, so he'll be behind the line. Morris is 6'4" and a good 3pt shooter, so he'll be behind the line.

[skywalker33]

Campazzo is too short to head to the basket and he's a decent 3pt shooter, so he'll be behind the line. Morris is 6'4" and a good 3pt shooter, so he'll be behind the line.

Well Facu wan NOT on his 3pt game last night, he should have been going to the rim, even at 5'11"

And weren't you the one calling me out about heights on the Nuggets website, no way Morris is 6'4"

[NuggetsWY]

Campazzo is too short to head to the basket and he's a decent 3pt shooter, so he'll be behind the line. Morris is 6'4" and a good 3pt shooter, so he'll be behind the line.

Well Facu wan NOT on his 3pt game last night, he should have been going to the rim, even at 5'11"

And weren't you the one calling me out about heights on the Nuggets website, no way Morris is 6'4"

Agreed on Campazzo, but as I indicated earlier, I don't think he should have been in the game at all, not based on his shooting.

As for heights last time I was going by the official NBA Nuggets page and you didn't like that so this time I just picked a number I believe the official chart says 6'3" - not much of a difference

[Mickey8]

Last second shot - first off, as someone else said, the game should have never come down to that shot.
Denver scored just 22 points in both the 1st quarter & the 4th quarter.
Denver scored 30+ in the 3rd & 4th quarters - Washington scored 30+ in those two quarters.
More scoring in the 1st & 4th quarters or more defense in the 2nd & 3rd quarters; it wouldn't have taken much.

Last second shot was a symptom of what is wrong with Denver's offense. Our 3pt shooting percentage is better than the NBA average and we attempt around an NBA average number of 3pt shots per game. The problem is, our guys all want to take the 3pt shot. Just a couple of years ago, they were cutting towards the basket during the game. Now, even during the game, they stand at the 3pt line waiting for their turn to shoot. It carried over to this last play where Morris & Campazzo & Porter were all within a few feet of each other and all waiting for a 3pt shot. It's the mindset of the team - BIG SHOT WANTED!

Everyone admits someone should have cut to the basket, but if the same scenario happens again, we could have the same results because Porter is perhaps our best 3pt shooter, so he'll be behind the line. Campazzo is too short to head to the basket and he's a decent 3pt shooter, so he'll be behind the line. Morris is 6'4" and a good 3pt shooter, so he'll be behind the line.

The first quarter was an example of the players taking bad shots and not exploiting Washington weaknesses on defense and thats on Malone , letting players run anarchy , bad shot after bad shot, losing balls etc. If I was in the place of Jokic or Murray , I would be tempted to smack Barton,Porter and Campazzo upside their heads.

[NuggetsWY]

Last second shot - first off, as someone else said, the game should have never come down to that shot.
Denver scored just 22 points in both the 1st quarter & the 4th quarter.
Denver scored 30+ in the 3rd & 4th quarters - Washington scored 30+ in those two quarters.
More scoring in the 1st & 4th quarters or more defense in the 2nd & 3rd quarters; it wouldn't have taken much.

Last second shot was a symptom of what is wrong with Denver's offense. Our 3pt shooting percentage is better than the NBA average and we attempt around an NBA average number of 3pt shots per game. The problem is, our guys all want to take the 3pt shot. Just a couple of years ago, they were cutting towards the basket during the game. Now, even during the game, they stand at the 3pt line waiting for their turn to shoot. It carried over to this last play where Morris & Campazzo & Porter were all within a few feet of each other and all waiting for a 3pt shot. It's the mindset of the team - BIG SHOT WANTED!

Everyone admits someone should have cut to the basket, but if the same scenario happens again, we could have the same results because Porter is perhaps our best 3pt shooter, so he'll be behind the line. Campazzo is too short to head to the basket and he's a decent 3pt shooter, so he'll be behind the line. Morris is 6'4" and a good 3pt shooter, so he'll be behind the line.

The first quarter was an example of the players taking bad shots and not exploiting Washington weaknesses on defense and thats on Malone , letting players run anarchy , bad shot after bad shot, losing balls etc. If I was in the place of Jokic or Murray , I would be tempted to smack Barton,Porter and Campazzo upside their heads.

Interesting that you included Porter in there with the implication of him taking bad shots. Of course any shot he does not make becomes a "bad shot" to the naysayers but overall, his shooting was fairly decent in this game. Even the greatest shooters have bad games - but this was not one of those for Porter. Don't let your own rhetoric prove you are blind to the reality.

[THE J0KER]

Malone should less often "call the actions" in the 2nd half because our most important players clearly underperforming when he kills their playing instincts, freedom, and creativity to do what they want or when playing strict offensive schemes. Also, I guess very negative and toxic pressure on MPJ and Barton about their starting SF roles and minutes make both worse in the 2nd half.

[_Joker]

He needs to be binned. He's a nice guy, but he's not up to it. This team has gone backwards at an alarming rate.

[skywalker33]

He needs to be binned. He's a nice guy, but he's not up to it. This team has gone backwards at an alarming rate.

Little drastic, not to say we couldn't use a change. However, injuries, new teammates, chemistry, etc....however, some very noticable coaching deficiencies IMO.

[NuggetsWY]

He needs to be binned. He's a nice guy, but he's not up to it. This team has gone backwards at an alarming rate.

Little drastic, not to say we couldn't use a change. However, injuries, new teammates, chemistry, etc....however, some very noticable coaching deficiencies IMO.

Yeah, a little drastic but I wouldn't object .
It seems like there have been more injuries on a lot of teams this year. Perhaps due to the shortened training campe and pre-season, lack of summer league and covid impact: lots of teams are going through the same issues as the Nuggets - except, most teams did not add as many new players as the Nuggets did.

New players: Campazzo, Howard, Hampton, Green, Nnaji, Whittington, Hartenstein add in Bol's unique situation and chemistry might be the biggest issue we have.

[NuggetsWY]

Congratulations Coach Malone for NBA's April Coach of the Month.
It's a well-deserved award, based on managing the Nuggets' rotation after Murray's injury followed by Barton's & Morris (and now Dozier). I suspect the Nuggets' hot streak through all of that surprised everyone and I do mean everyone.

[TunaFish]

He needs to be binned. He's a nice guy, but he's not up to it. This team has gone backwards at an alarming rate.

That comment didn't age so well.

[NuggetsWY]

During one of the games, the in-between-quarters interview called Coach "Mike". He said, "It's Michael". I like that. In the sports world, it seems like too many people just make up names for people. Sometimes their given name is modified like "I'm their best friend so I can call him 'Mike' and other teams it's some bizarre nickname that no one else uses.

Personal pet peeve and glad to see coach take a stance!

[THE J0KER]

When you losing your 2nd best player, you up minutes of your other top players especially in playoffs are one of the basic forced rules in basketball, but seems unknown for our coach. Nuggets are the only team in the 2021 playoff without any player playing 35+ minutes per game, and the 3 best players of all the other 15 playoff teams played more combined minutes per game than Jokic+Porter+Gordon which is just absurd.

[PDXKnight]

When you losing your 2nd best player, you up minutes of your other top players especially in playoffs are one of the basic forced rules in basketball, but seems unknown for our coach. Nuggets are the only team in the 2021 playoff without any player playing 35+ minutes per game, and the 3 best players of all the other 15 playoff teams played more combined minutes per game than Jokic+Porter+Gordon which is just absurd.

Yes it does seem odd especially for the playoffs

[skywalker33]

Can't see Malone's job being in jeopardy for the time being, team's circumstance with injuries were what led to the earlier-than-expected exit this year

[U hova]

Digging this up to say, We are a top 1 defense this year

Not really sure how, someone else would have to break it down. But Malone's finally got what he wanted.
All this after Wes Unseld left too!

Now if only he could help the bench a little... Our 2nd unit really seems to be lost after the first action doesn't result in any openings. Our starters / any lineup with Jokic has constant movement that keeps the defense on their feet but I'm seeing a little too many isolations / Simple pnr when Jokic sits.

It really shows up with our offensive numbers when Jokic is on/off the court.
Part of that is the obvious talent difference, but it can't just be that because other benches do not isolate on 100% of their halfcourt possessions. Some of it is perhaps the complete lack of MPJ or Morris who are higher on the "pecking order" and are the ones traditionally given the keys to make something happen. But we are really shooting ourselves in the foot there.

[TunaFish]

Digging this up to say, We are a top 1 defense this year

Not really sure how, someone else would have to break it down. But Malone's finally got what he wanted.
All this after Wes Unseld left too!

Now if only he could help the bench a little... Our 2nd unit really seems to be lost after the first action doesn't result in any openings. Our starters / any lineup with Jokic has constant movement that keeps the defense on their feet but I'm seeing a little too many isolations / Simple pnr when Jokic sits.

It really shows up with our offensive numbers when Jokic is on/off the court.
Part of that is the obvious talent difference, but it can't just be that because other benches do not isolate on 100% of their halfcourt possessions. Some of it is perhaps the complete lack of MPJ or Morris who are higher on the "pecking order" and are the ones traditionally given the keys to make something happen. But we are really shooting ourselves in the foot there.

Your point about Malone and Denver's current top defensive ranking is right on. So how did Malone do it? Adding Gordon was a big plus. At the same time it is apparent that Jokic has taken another step forward and is orchestrating the defense. Jokic's size presents problems when he is in the right position. If you watch him closely, you can see this latest improved efficiency on defense. This is from a better understanding of team defensive fundamentals. Every year Jokic finds something in his game to improve.

Take Gordon and Jokic out and there will be problems. Hopefully, Barton and Bones will be part of the solution.

[The Rebel]

Digging this up to say, We are a top 1 defense this year

Not really sure how, someone else would have to break it down. But Malone's finally got what he wanted.
All this after Wes Unseld left too!

Now if only he could help the bench a little... Our 2nd unit really seems to be lost after the first action doesn't result in any openings. Our starters / any lineup with Jokic has constant movement that keeps the defense on their feet but I'm seeing a little too many isolations / Simple pnr when Jokic sits.

It really shows up with our offensive numbers when Jokic is on/off the court.
Part of that is the obvious talent difference, but it can't just be that because other benches do not isolate on 100% of their halfcourt possessions. Some of it is perhaps the complete lack of MPJ or Morris who are higher on the "pecking order" and are the ones traditionally given the keys to make something happen. But we are really shooting ourselves in the foot there.

Your point about Malone and Denver's current top defensive ranking is right on. So how did Malone do it? Adding Gordon was a big plus. At the same time it is apparent that Jokic has taken another step forward and is orchestrating the defense. Jokic's size presents problems when he is in the right position. If you watch him closely, you can see this latest improved efficiency on defense. This is from a better understanding of team defensive fundamentals. Every year Jokic finds something in his game to improve.

Take Gordon and Jokic out and there will be problems. Hopefully, Barton and Bones will be part of the solution.

Another thing is that Morris is a better PG defender than Murray.

[TunaFish]