DENVER — Nuggets head coach Michael Malone dismissed “stupid-ass questions” about Denver blowing a 20-point second-half lead to squander Game 7 of the west semis.
“Next question, man,” he said after being asked how hard it is to absorb the loss after holding such a big lead. “The season’s over. That’s what’s hard. F**k being up 20. The season’s over. You don’t understand that. The season’s over, it’s hard.”Denver’s season ends despite 35 points from Jamal Murray and 34 from Nikola Jokic in Game 7. The rest of the Nuggets’ roster scored just 21.“I think so much has been placed on their shoulders,” Malone said of his two offensive stars.
“I think the run last season and coming back and the amount of minutes that our starters had to play … I think mentally, emotionally, physically, I think guys are gassed. They're dead tired,” he said. “They gave me everything I could ever ask for.”