Michael Malone calls lack of effort 'huge concern' in Game 2 loss / News - Basketnews.com

Nuggets coach Michael Malone blasted the team's lackluster performance in Game 2 loss: "This is not the preseason, it's not the regular season, it's not a [playoff] round, this is the NBA Finals, and that to me is really, really perplexing, disappointing."

Credit: USA TODAY Sports via Reuters Con - Scanpix Credit USA TODAY Sports via Reuters Con - Scanpix

Nuggets head coach Michael Malone didn't hold back in his criticism of Denver's lackluster performance during their Game 2 loss against the Miami Heat in the NBA Finals.

Player of the Game EFF 23 Bam Adebayo Points 21 Accuracy 8-14 Rebounds 9 Assists 4

Malone expressed his disappointment with his team's effort, as the Heat outplayed the Nuggets, evened the championship series at 1-1, and delivered the first home loss for Denver in the 2023 NBA Playoffs.

"Let's talk about effort. I mean, this is the NBA Finals and we're talking about effort. That's a huge concern of mine," Malone said after a 108-111 defeat. "You guys probably thought I was just making up some storyline after Game 1 but I said we didn't play well. We didn't play well.

"We had guys out there that were just whether feeling sorry for themselves and not making shots, or thinking they can just turn it on or off."

Malone went on to say that the NBA Finals background makes the Nuggets' lackluster showing even more perplexing and disappointing.

"This is not the preseason, it's not the regular season, it's not a [playoff] round, this is the NBA Finals, and that to me is really, really perplexing, disappointing.

"I asked the team, I asked the guys, 'Tell me why we lost?', and they knew the answer. Miami came in here and outworked us. We were by far in our least disciplined game of these 16 or 17 playoff games. So many breakdowns, and they exploited every one of those breakdowns and scored."

As the series shifts to Miami for Game 3 and Game 4, the Nuggets find themselves on the road and facing the challenge of turning the tide in their favor.

Thank you for reading us! We have even more content for you.