Michael Malone on Denver Nuggets Moves at the NBA Trade Deadline

Michael Malone on Denver Nuggets Moves at the NBA Trade Deadline

What we got coach given the way that last season and the fight kind of for the top of the Western Conference didn’t exist you guys were in first for so long how does the way things are shaking up this season help you guys well I I’m

Going to really hate saying this but I think our guys got a little board last year you know we took over I believe first place in the west from Memphis maybe uh second or third week of December and then we kind of had it throughout and I think there were

Stretches where our guys were just kind of like let’s just get to the play this year is totally different I mean you watch you know OKC get beat last night you watched Minnesota get beat last night Clippers haven’t lost seems like in forever and then you wake up and

You see the standard is a four-way tie for first place um so I think the difference is for me every every game like there’s so much riding on every game and we have four to go before the All-Star break and coming out of the break we have 27 to go so obviously I

Think that it maybe helps our guys stay a little bit more locked in and engaged knowing that you drop a game you could go from first to to Fourth you drop three or four you could I mean you have sack you have New Orleans you have Dallas you have Phoenix all those teams

Are playing well at the same time so hopefully it allows our guys just to be more engaged and understand that we don’t have that margin that we had last year it’s a different year Michael your your bench if you had to start the playoffs today where would your trust

Level be and obviously it’s a nice luxury to have another couple months to get that figured out but just where is that Evolution coming on the bench yeah I think it’s coming along nicely I mean just look at pton Watson you know last two games Payton has like closed out the

Fourth quarter and impacting the game across the board defense rebounding shot making attacking the basket uh I think Christian Brown is a guy that came off of a great game against Portland and now helping him just find a way to be more consistent I think Reggie’s been really

Good the whole year you know what you have in Jamal and then whether whether it’s DeAndre Jordan or zek Nai at that five but and when you get into the playoffs like we did last year you know that that rotation is going to be cut

Down it just the way it happens you get into a series and you find a group of eight guys maybe eight and a half guys that can maybe go out there and win you a series but um you know we we committed to playing young guys and you look at

Pton Christian Julian prior to him getting hurt um Zeke early in the year they’re all getting rotation minutes and that’s going to be really important to their development not just this year but just moving forward looking down the road after game four of the Conference Finals it was a special moment right for

You guys will you think about that and all when you get back there um those moments you know in that series nothing nothing comes to mind nothing you know over that no this is uh obviously game two against the Lakers for us um you know as great as that was first time the

The Nuggets had won a Western Conference Championship the first time they had beaten the Lakers and the playoffs all those things that was great but I think our whole mindset coming into this year was even the champ Championship like all that’s over this is a new team with a

Lot of new faces and a new challenge and uh so this is an opportunity for us to find a way to to steal some games going into the uh Allstar break and it’s going to be an emotional night obviously the Kobe Bryant statue on vaning fire TR the

Game Mamba night uh obviously a well-deserved recognition for one of the greatest to ever do it um and obviously a player in personality that we all miss in the NBA but it’ll be a great great evening emotional night and hopefully our guys are ready to uh to go out there

And embrace the the atmosphere and the adversity and uh and find a way to get a roadwi more on Kobe like do you find yourself sometimes just like a thought Pops in of your mind a memory like when you’re doing random stuff you know around work or at the house like not uh

Not not too too much to be honest I mean as we approach the Laker game with with this being you know the statue and the Mamba night uh you start thinking about that and I go back to the day it happened we had a home game was an afternoon afternoon game against Houston

I believe and I was in my office one of the coaches came in and said hey I don’t I’m not on like he goes have you heard I go heard what he goes there reports that Kobe was in an accident and we’re all like no way and then sure enough I went

It was one of the weirdest locker rooms I’ve ever walked into we getting ready to play a game and the reality of Kobe Bryant tragic passing with his daughter and all the other people that were in that helicopter the tragic accident and trying to get our guys to go out there

And play a game I mean Co Kobe is a guy that so many of our guys have looked up to and he was you know a motivating factor in their own careers so that was a really tough day and uh so it’s it’s cool to be a small part of the Lakers

Honoring him uh which is going to be you know just a a great to be a small part of that you mentioned Christian that last game you said he’s at his best was you know playing with energy diving for the to the floor to lose balls he

Entered this year with a lot of new resp responsibilities taking the ball up running pick and roll as a young player especially do you think it’s hard to like have new responsibilities and have new things you’re thinking about while also prioritizing what you do well yeah

Cuz I think what happens is you know when Jamal went out with injury Reggie started and then we were playing Christian as our backup one at times and uh and and fairness to Christian he did a really good job but that’s you know probably a big ask you know for a guy

That’s never really played that position to played in the NBA you know uh in games that we are trying to win and again when I say that he did a fine job but it’s probably more on me but I I think part of Christian finding himself

Is getting back to being true to himself you I mean staying with you know and last year he had the luxury of what he was playing with Bruce Jamal Reggie Jeff and Aaron you know in that playoff run and this year a lot of the Season he’s

Been out there with Reggie Julian a rookie Payton a rookie and Zeke a young player player indoor DJ so a completely different group around him and uh you know whether it be at Kansas or here and like any player like you’re going to be a better play when you’re out there with

You know great players around you um but I think him just kind of reminding himself and we had a great meeting the other day and he’s just understands that I got to get back to doing what I do what made me a winner in high school

What made me a winner in college and what made me a winner last year as a rookie in the NBA and I think last game against Portland he did that I don’t want him to be perfect I don’t want him playing afraid to make a mistake I want

Him to be aggressive physical um disciplined he’s he’s an intangible guy and he’s got to live up to all those intangibles can you give us a quick synopsis of the dodgeball game today yeah it was a split one to one yeah uh the players came out on fire I felt

Targeted I felt I took it a little personally uh Jamal got me first game Joker got me second game and the uh the smiles on their faces were a little disturbing when they did that so it was just uh you know these are the dog days we’re just trying to find different ways

To get guys loose bring some fun to the gym and uh then get into practice light practice obviously but uh this time of year I think you got to find ways to keep it fresh and uh the players enjoyed it was it players versus coaches yes

Yeah so one to one we didn’t go to a rubber match I didn’t want the players going to La disappointed so we kept the Positive Vibes going with uh with Reggie his his shooting splits have been down since around Christmas compared to what they were Jamal was hurt for instance is

That part of that the same thing with with Christian where he’s playing with those other starting guys and that can sort of just help with his looks or you still liking the looks that he’s getting overall yeah know I I tell you if you guys like dig into our our wide openen

Percentage is wide open three-point percentage or open three-point percentage we’re generating Great Looks which is all I ever care about and as a team we have not shot the ball well like you look at Michael and kcp um those guys are great Shooters and you can tell

Right now guys re tired but with Reggie in particular I think one yeah when I’m out there with Nicole yic the shots I’m getting are going to be wide open looks and then I also think that Reggie’s played a lot of minut for us this year I

Think there’s also some heavy legs some fatigue throughout the roster and that’s why we have to find a way to dig deep these last four at La at sack at Milwaukee and home against sack to go into the break feeling good about ourselves but yeah fatigue is real these

Guys are tired we played a lot of basketball and we just got to find a way to uh to get through it coach obviously the the trade deadline is coming up tomorrow I know you spoke about it on Sunday but just when you’re going around to certain guy when you’re

Talking to certain guys just what do what do you say to them in situations like this even though like it’s not expected to be this massive yeah I mean I haven’t spoken to anybody I mean um the only the only time I’m ever going to go speak to somebody is if there is

Something active going on you know I mean and just uh having those conversations but um I haven’t you know I’ve talked with Calvin you know met with him a few times times um you know but I don’t they feel there’s a need to really address something that isn’t

There um I think all our players understand this is a business you never know what kind of phone calls you will get you have to answer that phone and Calvin’s job that’s his uh you know number one responsibility you’re always looking at ways to get better but um you

Know you wake up after 51 52 games you’re tied for first we’re trying to develop a lot of young players uh and I still think we have another gear that we can get to I think in a pretty good place but um if something comes up I’ll

Grab guys and kind of give them a heads up and talk to them about it but um that hasn’t happened as of yet Super Bowl pick Super Bowl um uh I don’t know let’s go with uh the team that wears red

Denver Nuggets head coach Michael Malone spoke to Denver media ahead of the Nugget’s upcoming road trip. He spoke on the Nugget’s plans heading into the trade deadline, reflected on the legacy of Kobe Bryant, and revealed why he felt specifically targeted during today’s dodgeball games. Malone really seems to like his roster. He spoke about the growth of Peyton Watson, Christian Braun and the rest of the young guys as well as his trust in Reggie Jackson. Mo was in a good mood today. That usually indicates that he likes where his team is at.

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