Denver Nuggets suffer worst loss in franchise history in Game 6

Denver Nuggets suffer worst loss in franchise history in Game 6

[Music] [Music] all right folks welcome in to pickaxe and roll brought to you by our good friends over ATB Online and number 38 I am your host Ryan Blackburn at NBA Blackburn on Twitter part of the Mile High Sports podcast Network and I am here talking about man man oh man what a hor horrible horrible loss last night for the Denver Nuggets as they dropped that one 115 to 70 uh I obviously couldn’t podcast last night how many people could actually podcast last night and share those views I mean this was a disgusting performance in general but the more I think about it the more I think it’s a little bit less unexpected Than People realize the Wolves were going to be desperate the nuggets just won three games in a row it’s really hard to win four games in a row in the playoffs and it’s really hard to win four games in a row in the regular season so the more I think about it the more I I understand why it happened but the degree to which it actually happened was uh not fantastic we’ll talk about it all we will make sure to go through all of the layers all of the details everything that needs to be said everything that needs to be discussed including we’ll talk about Jamal Murray struggles talk about Michael Porter who has not so secretly been pretty bad in this series and we will go over a variety of other things as well should be maybe not fun but I think necessary for covering this game but first I got to tell everybody about bet online the number one source for the latest odds and Bets this summer with MLB golf NBA and NHL playoff options all you got to do you get go and find the latest stats news and scores available and follow your favorite teams head over to their website use your mobile device to get in on the action get the latest odds and lines and everything in between bet online where the game starts all right let’s talk about last night let’s talk about what happened this was a gross gross performance in a variety of ways but it didn’t start off that way it did not start that way and I think if you’re a nuggets fan you probably felt pretty good heading into the first timeout where Denver goes on a nine to2 run out of like in the first three minutes of the game The Wolves couldn’t hit anything the Nuggets were not necessarily hitting outside shots that often but they were doing pretty well Michael Porter hit a three turned out to be his only three of the game Nicole yach hit a couple baskets and things were looking good and then the Wolves rattle off a 20 to to zero run and that doesn’t help matters it really doesn’t um Denver was stuck on nine points there were times where they were stuck on I think 33 points they were stuck on 63 points throughout this game and there were so many prolonged stretches in this one where Denver just could not score they couldn’t do anything at all and the fact that they let go of the rope in that way not really I guess I guess I’m not surprised because Denver’s done this before in this series against this team uh in the Timberwolves where uh game two it wasn’t quite like game two this was more about Denver just missing shots like Minnesota played great defense don’t get me wrong but Denver still generated some good shots and then we’ll talk about that a little bit later but the more and more I think about it it was just like Denver let these poor shooting moments they let these poor opportunities work against them and they allowed runouts on points in transition they allowed points off of turnovers it was not a great performance for obvious reasons Denver had only three total points on six Minnesota turnovers the Wolves had 19 points off of 12 Denver turnovers and the Nuggets just didn’t get anything easy and so they’re stuck in the half court for the entire time trying to figure out how to operate and rather than get jokic into the post on a consistent basis the Nuggets had to stay very perimeter oriented because the Wolves were doubling Nicole yic constantly and he was subpar I’m not going to sit here and say that he was great he was the only nugget that was anything close to subpar everybody else I think was horrible and the Wolves sensed that they knew that they understood that that was how it’s going to be and they doubled yic incessantly forced other players to beat them and not only did those players not beat the Timberwolves they actively hurt Denver in a lot of ways including Jamal including Michael Porter but also the bench and we we’ll talk about the bench a little bit later too and yet through all of that Denver nearly worked their way way back near halftime there was a sense there was a moment where okay the Wolves had gone up by like 25 26 27 points and then the Nuggets worked it down to 21 and then right before the half they got a stop and they were down 17 points and Aaron Gordon grabs a contested Rebound with like what 15 seconds left to go or something and tries to throw the ball the length of the the Florida Jamaal Murray but gets disrupted turns it over and the Wolves score on the ensuing possession after an offensive rebound heading into halftime so it could have been a 14 or 15-point game and instead it was a 19point game and I really feel like right at that half that was where the momentum was killed that was where the Nuggets knew that they were not going to win this game it was 19point margin and that’s just how the cookie crumbles sometimes it’s not fun it’s like you never want to hear that as a nuggets fan but that’s just how I think it was and then Denver came out in the second half never really recovered it was a 19point deficit they tried fighting a little bit but they just couldn’t score uh it turned into a 25-point deficit and then out of the fourth quarter joic stayed on the floor it didn’t matter Denver couldn’t score anyway it went down to a 30p point deficit and then they pulled the plug and then the bench came in it was even worse like just so much bad so so so bad and this game got up to a 50 point margin 50 points I don’t think I’ve ever seen that from the nuggets before like even in the regular season at least keep it respectable at 40 but like the Nuggets were so bad and so off-kilter and the Wolves were playing really well on both ends of the floor that they pushed that margin up to 50 points ultimately it settled on 45 which was statistically by Point margin the worst playoff loss in Denver Nuggets franchise history not great not how you want it to go and just being at the bar last night number 38 we had a great time we did a nice pregame podcast and things were going pretty well The Vibes were high and fans like even stuck around for this 45o margin and this it was just horrible to to witness in person because nuggets fans I think were very excited about last night they wanted to see whether Denver could get it done on the road and the opposite happened Denver collapsed they did not play with poise they turned the ball over and even if they didn’t turn the ball over the shots that they generated inside the ark were horrible they were contested they were off off balance off kilter often a lot of fadeaways a lot of floaters nothing all the way to the rim and that involved Denver settling for threes a ton and you got to give a lot of credit to Rudy goar on this he got clowned a lot in game five a lot and for him to come back and play the way that he played defensively I think it’s really impressive I honestly do and like the Nuggets just could not get anything around the rim for the sole reason that Rudy goar was lurking and Jamal Murray had the worst time of it I’m going to talk about him a little bit more extended in the second segment but he was completely flumix by the rim protection he was very tentative he didn’t know when to go up versus when not to go up Christian Brown got into the into the lane several times just had no idea what to do uh and Nicole yic he shot over goar and did a reasonable job maybe not his most efficient performance but still shot nine of 19 but on a night where jokic was subpar and Jamaal Murray was horrible it just was never going to happen for Denver and everybody else was horrible but you can’t really expect and I’m gonna Hammer this point home going forward the stars are the ones that have to play well on the road you have to get great star production because the role players you’re not expecting them to shine in Road games like that’s just not how the NBA Works they need momentum they need good coaching they need the crowd behind them you can feel and sense the momentum and just in a place of comfort at home and that’s just not what was going to happen in game six so Denver needed joic Murray and to a lesser extent Porter to really show up in this one one and they’re like 0.5 out of three in terms of who showed up yic I think was kind of there but Murray and Porter it’s just a it’s really bad Denver as a whole they shot seven out of 36 from three on open or wide openen threes according to nba.com they were six out of 31 so they generally shot a ton of open shots when they’re out on the perimeter the Wolves dared them on several possessions like they closed out hard but that was the shot that they were willing to live with they were not going to let Murray get going in the middle of the lane they were not going to let yic get going in the middle of the lane they were going to force those guys to kick it out and Denver just did not make them pay and so that’s going to be a pivot point in game seven can Denver hit their open shots or if they don’t can they at least limit Minnesota from hitting their open shots because Minnesota they hit as many as they needed to and it wasn’t this crazy offensive performance from them but it was pretty like it was was a pretty strong opportunity that they had and they just could not get it done so yeah just a a really tough um a really tough thing okay true tell if you continue to spam if you post the same message over and over again I will put you in timeout at least have a different message um look 31 open or wide openen threes if you’re not going to make those you’re or at least a consistent number of those then you’re not going to get it done that wasn’t the reason that Denver lost but you need everybody in these moments and it’s why when you’re facing a great team like Minnesota just going to be difficult Denver’s going to have to work for it they’re going to have to play better and they went the opposite direction after what was a an okay game five it was a masterful performance from yic in game five but nobody else really did well and then It’s just tough it’s it’s tough to expect everybody to step up in game six and there was just a lot of uh a lot of perimeter attacking not a lot of paint aggression not a lot of playing with force uh Murray obviously is the main culprit there he was pretty bad the entire night and but it was it was everybody frankly like Denver Denver could not get anything going towards the rim and there’s just a lot to be concerned about heading into game seven so when we come back we’re going to talk about Murray a little bit more extendedly we’re going to talk about Porter a little bit more extendedly and then I’m gonna give some credit to Anthony Edwards and Rudy goar we’ll be right back but first as I mentioned earlier number 38 has done a great job hosting Mile High Sports and Denver stiffs for watch parties for pregame podcasts The Vibes in the place were incredible we were outside last night uh the weather was so good and they they’ve got this massive stage and this open green area and that just a really great opportunity to hang out be with friends and it sucked that it happened for game six but they’re going to do another watch party for game seven if you’re open on Sunday if you’re looking for a great place to hang number 38 is your place to go make sure to go check it out it’s in Rhino you’re going to want to get there early uh parking’s not perfect but you’re going to want to find a way to stop by at number 38 because the atmosphere is incredible so be a lot of fun everybody we will be right back on pickax and [Music] roll we’re back pickax and roll Ryan Blackburn here thank you for so much for tuning into the show hit the like button hit the Subscribe button if you are on the uh if you are on the U audio side of things make sure to go check that out uh make sure to uh what am I saying uh leave a rating and review that would be great as I continue to put out content both for the video and the audio audiences I would love for a some positive ratings and reviews to come in especially at this time where I don’t have to podcast at this like I mean it’s just actually I do I I def definitely do but it’s going to be tough GNA be interesting to see how Denver bounces back so leaving a positive rating in review would be great okay we got to talk about Jamal gotta talk about Jamal Murray in this game U Denver scored 70 points and the primary culer for that was Jamal 10 points on four of 18 from the field two of seven from three zero of Zero from the line he has not attempted more than three free throws in any one game and this is his third time in the series that he’s attempted zero free throws 10 points five assists two turnovers four of 18 from the field and it was just the way that it unfolded that was really tough he started I think one of 11 from the field I think it was two of 13 at one point ultimately finishes four of 18 he got a couple threes to go in the second half but like it was was ugly for a long time and the most important factor in his struggles is the fact that he just cannot get separation he cannot move and it’s whether it’s the calf he hurt the elbow like that’s what he was talking about last night I think that seems like a pretty poultry excuse um whether it was like just the amazing perimeter defense that the t- wolves are playing like they do have two of the best perimeter defenders in the league in nikil Alexander Walker and Jada McDaniels those guys were unbelievable and the other factor is that Anthony Edwards is taking on the assignment of guarding Jamal Murray with the starters so that jayen McDaniels can guard Michael Porter and that factor has really styed Porter uh when the opposing team has to two Elite perimeter Defenders with length and athleticism with great hands with physicality it makes it really difficult and Edwards like is not at the same level that those two are but he has moments where he can absolutely dominate as a Defender and the fact that Murray can’t make that coverage pay I think is a really big issue now there are some clips that are going around I shared some I think Stefan no uh posted some that a lot of the defense that the wolves are playing at this point is they are shrinking the floor they are putting as many bodies in front of the Murray yic pick and roll as possible and then they are closing out the shooters that are not necessarily super comfortable so whether that’s Aaron Gordon whether that’s Christian Brown they’ll live with a casc P3 uh even Michael Porter at times they will sag off of him and they’ll give half help on him basically not give him a a empty lane or anything like that but often times when Murray is coming off of the screen like if it’s ant behind him or Jen McDaniels or nil Alexander Walker those guys are so good at getting around screens on the ball that there’s not a lot of space and then you’ve got Rudy goar roaming off of Aaron Gordon you’ve got Carl Anthony towns in your face and then you’ve also got other guys kind of sagging off of the the wings and off the corners and so the driving lanes and the maneuverability are just not there and if Murray was a little bit healthier it might be a little bit better but I honestly don’t think it would be that much better because the wolves are an elite defense and Murray this is just a matchup that he was always going to struggle with and I do think like to give him a little bit of benefit of the doubt on the physicality and the the athleticism aspect of it Denver’s played on again off again since game three and when they went down 02 like they had a little bit of time to recover Murray looked better out of game three and then he’s looked steadily worse ever since then game three he was at his best game four he was good game five he was me mostly bad or like subpar and then game six he was awful Denver’s got a couple days now they’ve got FR Friday will be an entire off day today Saturday they will practice and then Sunday they’ll play maybe he could get some uh rest a little bit and try to figure some stuff out but more importantly than that he’s just got to play better like it cannot be about how tired you are it cannot be about how physically like worn down you are it cannot be about the calf it cannot be about the lower body injuries like this is the moment that Murray is supposed to be the star for this is the opportunity this is where big game players are made of and not playing bad not playing well in game six like it’s set Denver back to be clear in that game even if he had played well it’s very possible that they would not have won but I do think that game seven he’s just got to show up like this cannot be a thing he’s a star and if you want to be a star you’ve got to show up in the big moments especially at home especially if for the entire playoffs you’ve been extreme extremely up and down to the point where like it’s been mostly down with him and so he’s really struggled with the way that the wolves have guarded him whether it’s in the pick and roll whether it’s in the dho there have been a couple times where he’s isolated but he’s isolating Rudy goar and Rudy goar is one of the best isolation bigs that you could possibly have for a team and so often in those moments m settling for a contested Longway to which he can make but the fact that he’s settling for that is a really bad sign so I’m at this point I don’t know what version of Murray they’re going to get physically in game seven I have to imagine it’ll be better than what they got in game six but at this point it’s got to be about accepting the challenge and being better right now he is at a like a 45% true shooting on the playoffs which is about as bad as it could possibly be and that is an issue that’s obviously an issue and Denver needs him to be at his best in these moments um and he has shown up in like especially in Back Against The Wall kind of moments he played really well in game three game five he came off of the sore calf and had 32 points on 28 shots including the the season or the Series winner against the Lakers down 3-1 game seven against the Clippers he had 40 points game seven against the Jazz he was horrible but in order to get there he had 50 points 42 points and 50 points in consecutive games so I am going to look I’m a Murray guy everybody knows this I’m not going to make a prediction for how he’s going to do because I just don’t know like I want to think the best of what is going to be what it’s going to happen because I’ve seen him show up in these moments I’ve seen him rise above the pressure rise above the pain and play really well in these moments could this be too much to overcome absolutely and if that’s the case you’re going to need other guys to step up because Denver can get a bad Murray game and still win game seven like the entire like they did that in game five now it took a master class from joic but it’s not like anybody else really played that well in game five like you could get a good Porter game you could get another good Aaron Gordon game Aaron Gordon played well I I will say that kcp shot really well the bench not necessar like they they were okay like Justin holiday wasn’t good but Reggie Jackson was solid uh Christian Brown was pretty good in game five but that’s like a normal kind of up and down what really is going to have to happen for Denver in game seven maybe I should save this for Segment three is their defense is just going to have to be better in the half court and that might involve benching Porter game six Porter was just as bad as Murray in different ways Murray had some bad moments on the defensive end but Porter entire game on defense was bad and his process and his decision- making on offense was bad too Murray’s obviously compromised from a physical perspective I’m not sure what Porter’s dealing with right now he’s dealing with Jen McDaniel’s disease um but even when it’s not Jen McDaniels like he’s getting ripped by Kyle Anderson in like Kyle Anderson’s got great hands but Porter has to know that by now they’ve played six games against each other but the defense with Porter has been horrible in these last three games in a row it is why Denver closed with Christian Brown in games four and five Christian Brown earned those minutes there’s no doubt about it but Porter I think aided that decision for Michael Malone really easily in this past game game six shot three of nine from the field one of six from three the only three that he hit I think was the first one that he attempted or at least it was an early one I don’t remember if it was the first um had a block but he only had five defensive rebounds and was just not helpful in a lot of those possessions and he was often the guy that when I’m I’m thinking about where the rotations are sort of breaking down it’s with Porter Jen McDaniels was his primary matchup for most of the night and Jen McDaniels went off 21 points eight of 10 three of five from three the Nuggets dared him to shoot oftentimes and I bet that that was a directive to Porter like if you have to help then help and we’ll let Jen McDaniels beat us and J McDaniels beat Denver he beat them like real good real good uh Jaden McDaniels made a lot of plays but there were a lot of guys in Minnesota that made a lot lot of plays including Anthony Edwards including Mike Conley who came back and I thought the the offense for Minnesota obviously looked better with Conley out there but look like Denver can’t have these defensive breakdowns with their starting group their starting group has been bad frankly for much of this series and the reason why is because Minnesota’s starting lineup is designed to give Denver starters hell so I’m not surprised that this this is happening what is surprising is the degree to which the nuggets are wilting and they’re playing kind of soft and Porter I think is at the center of that Porter has not played with the physicality with the intensity and with the definitiveness that you need from somebody in his position where yeah Murray’s had a tough time Porter does not need to have such a tough time as he has had like I can understand it with Murray with the physical like the physicality that he’s constantly dealing with how often the Timberwolves are over rotating towards him and like he’s he’s got to deal with navigating Rudy gobear like on top of all of the perimeter defense that he’s figuring out that’s tough it’s a tough place for him to be with Porter his job is not as difficult it just isn’t and yet he has played a pretty consistently poor game over the course of these past three now like with Murray you can turn that around in game seven you’ll be at home you’ll be in a situation where yes the pressure will be high but you’ve been in pressure situations before and porters played pretty reasonably in those pressure situations before so I consider him like like he’ll be able to step up he should absolutely be able to step up whether he does we’ll see final thing for this segment the bench uh the bench regressed in a major major way zero bench points in the first three quarters and a lot of that was on some Miss threes uh but also Reggie Jackson attacking the rim not doing so hot Christian Brown attacking the rim not doing so hot those guys really struggled Justin holiday was asked to hit some high pressure threes High leverage threes they didn’t go down he went 0 for three then 0 of five from the field the starters are the ones that are going to put Denver in position to win or lose a game like this and they were like I’m just listing the plus minuses here minus 27 – 28 – 25- 32 minus 24 this game was not on the bench there’s no doubt about it game seven comes around the bench is going to have to be better they’re going to have to show up in some way shape or form one guy’s going to have to step up maybe it’s Christian Brown maybe it’s Justin holiday maybe it’s Reggie Jackson maybe it’s a mystery candidate who knows but the bench got thoroughly outplayed by the Minnesota bench in this one and just can’t happen like Denver’s going to need a better version of that in game seven we’ll see whether they can when we come back we are going to chat about game seven and some initial thoughts uh I’m going to probably do another podcast on it with swiper we’ll probably do that either Saturday or early Sunday depending on when the game starts but we’re going to see what ultimately happens with it we’ll be right back but first pickax and roll hey nuggets fans Ryan Blackburn here host of the pickaxe and roll podcast on Mile High Sports we’ got the best Denver Nuggets coverage around so make sure not to miss an episode And subscribe down below to the Mile High Sports YouTube channel nuggets off to a great start make sure not to miss a thing on Mile High [Music] Sports all right we’re back pickaxe and roll Ryan Blackburn here thank you so much for tuning in the show uh leave a like subscribe to the channel That would be tremendous as we continue to grow the podcast um I am going to share my screen here if I can do that real quick Let’s uh let’s pull this up this being shared let’s go to this there we go omo Muk uh who great reporter for ESPN doing a great job he put together a nice little list from ESPN stats and info Denver’s the fifth game or the fifth team in NBA history to lose game six by 30 plus prior to a game seven three of the prior four teams rebounded to win game seven per ESPN stats if you look at those previous matchups uh Denver’s lost obviously the biggest that it could possibly be but 1996 Conference Finals between the superponics they ultimately won that and then Advanced to the NBA finals they lost game six won game seven the SuperSonics again lost game six and then lost game seven in 1978 that was in the NBA Finals so kind of not surprising in that regard 2018 first round Cavs that was against the Indiana Pacers I believe that was a LeBron James team where LeBron just decided okay I’m good I’m gonna play really hard in game seven and they ultimately figured that out LeBron was the best player on the floor against the Pacers that year Buon bogdanovich was tasked with guarding him that that time that’s a it’s a pretty tough tall order and then the 1992 conference semis for the Cavs interesting that the SuperSonics and the Cavs are the only two other franchises that have done this they ultimately got it done so I put that up here with the prospect of the series is not over despite the fact that it might feel like it’s over the series is not over the nuggets are in a tough spot and they’re going to have to bounce back and the good thing is that the that they’ve got a couple days off they’ got a couple days to rest recover figure out what the heck happened understand what they have to do in game seven and then psych themselves up for playing I think they’re capable of doing that and we’ve seen them with their backs against the wall before and I’ve already looks been basically been punished once for counting this team out when they were down 02 they came back they won three games in a row and like I said at the beginning of this podcast it can be hard to win four games in a row against any team and the t- Wolves May many thought that they might collapse in that moment but the fact that they didn’t I think shows yeah they’ve got some spine they’ve got some backbone they were not going to be embarrassed on their home floor and lose in front of their home fans in the manner that they did and so they showed up they showed up in a big way and Denver didn’t for game six Denver played on again off again on again off again and then on again for several games now and game four or no this was the fourth game in a row where they basically played um every other day and so I’m not surprised that they did not have the best performance I’m not now I could not be surprised and then also like Denver could absolutely lose in game seven because that’s the door that you open up for yourselves by losing game six Denver could have had an opportunity to close the door to not give Minnesota any opportunity in a game seven opportunity but that’s not what’s happening they’re gonna have to play hard they’re gonna have to play well game seven initial thoughts here both teams are mostly out of adjustments the wolves have done everything that they can to put Denver into a tough position the nuggets have done everything that they can there’s a couple of different matchup things that they might decide to do there’s a couple different players Off the Bench that they might play instead of whether it’s Michael Porter or Jamal Murray at times or kyp at times or Aaron Gordon it’s very possible that they decide hey we will try to mix up some lineups a little bit differently but for the most part Denver’s got their eight guys pton Watson has not been in this series and I don’t expect anybody else Off the Bench to be a major factor the Wolves also like I don’t expect anybody to be a major factor for them they’ve decided they’re going to go back to Kyle Anderson fine with them Naas Reed is available n Alexander Walker is obviously a major factor for them as a perimeter Defender and those are basically the three guys that they’re going to count on they’re not going to count on Monte Morris in a game seven I don’t think so mostly these these two teams are going to play an eight-man rotation against each other maybe it even gets down to seven and um one of Justin holiday or Reggie Jackson gets their minutes cut a little bit I think Christian Brown has firmly established himself as the primary Defender for Anthony Edwards when he’s out there so he’ll probably play but it wouldn’t surprise me if Justin holiday plays like five minutes Reggie Jackson plays like five minutes and then Nicole yic plays 46 to 48 and that’s the adjustment that the Nuggets play is that they are just going to play Joker the entire game I don’t think that they can do that with Jamal maybe he will be okay physically by that point and he’ll be able to play a little bit better after a couple days rest but I’m not expecting that much of a change I’m expecting a minor change not expecting a major change and it’s just going to be about I mean simply breaking it down to it’s going to be about who plays better who shoots better like where the the three-point variance is going to go who can make more hustle plays it looks like Minnesota’s been able to do that certainly in game six but games three four and five the nuggets made the hustle plays and that was what gave them the advantage in a lot of these moments they drew charges they forced turnovers they ran in fast breaks they did everything that they could to limit the opposing team at the paint um true teller asks Ryan why don’t they hunt Mike Conley on switches like they did in regular season part of it is because it’s really difficult and the t-wolves have done a fantastic job throughout this series of avoiding that switch where whether it’s McDaniels or Edwards or Nel Alexander Walker they are really hard to screen they are really hard to force a switch off of and so if it’s my Denver should be trying to fight that but the problem that you run into when you try to hunt those switches for too long is that the shot clock just runs it just drops and goes from 10 to 7 to 4 and you’re suddenly out of time because you’re too busy focusing on hey maybe we could get Mike Conley on a switch when in reality mik conell is a pretty solid Defender he’s just shorter so that’s the big reason it’s going to be about who makes the hustle plays and it’s also going to be about who generates the easiest shots at the rim and at the free throw line the t-wolves shot 24 free throws in this past game the Nugget shop 14 they couldn’t draw any contact part of that is because you’re playing on the road part of that is because the tber Wolves were the more aggressive in the physical team and so they were ready for that and I think the ref’s kind of rewarded them for being that physical version of themselves um I don’t think that there were any bad calls really made I I don’t think that the the refs were a big deal in game six we’ll see if they’re a big deal in game seven I I don’t know that could be a factor uh we just got two games of Mark Davis I thought that Mark Davis was fine in game six I didn’t see any major factor there many change major change there um maybe you get a Tony Brothers game seven that’ll be interesting Tony Brothers they haven’t had a Zack zarba game I don’t think so it wouldn’t surprise me if they get Zack zarba um and then they got Ed moly game five they got Scott Foster game four I don’t think that they get either of those two guys but who knows like they’re gonna want a veteran crew on this so I’m gonna guess that Tony brothers and Zach Zara are part of the the ref crew in game seven who knows maybe it matters maybe it doesn’t um Can Jamal Murray B deep I already talked about that he’s going to have to find some level of impact if not then they’re gonna have to change up his role a little bit like he can’t soak up all of those possessions that he soaked up in game six and a lot of it was early on where he just like he took 10 shots was one of 10 had a couple bad turnovers just not necessarily playing like with the force and intensity that you need to they’re gonna have to figure out pretty early if Murray can do that or not and if he can’t then he’s going to have to pick his spots a little bit better and they’re goingon to have to go to somebody else whether that’s Reggie in pick and roll whether that’s more Porter in dho situations whether they’re using Murray as more of a screener and then Aaron Gordon gets free a little bit under the rim that’s that would be a pretty solid option um yeah we’re gonna have to see what Jamal Murray can do because a lot of this is dictated by can he handle that pressure and if he can’t then they’ll have to Pivot witch nugget is going to make some threes would be nice if it was Michael Porter if it’s not Michael Porter they might have to go small and they might have to get him off the floor because his defense has not been good enough uh that’s a that’s a massive issue like and it’s it’s a problem that I think nuggets fans sort of forgot existed and I I wasn’t really considering that he would be a defensive liability but he has been in the last three games and then the last Factor that’s probably the most important of them all who’s going to be the best player on the floor is it going to be Anthony Edwards like it was in game six is it gonna be Nicole yic like it was in game five I think joic and Edwards were basically tied for the best player on the floor in game four but the most important thing from that game was that Aaron Gordon was unbelievable in game four game three I think joic was the best player on the floor in that one game two it didn’t matter the Nuggets were stuck under a A buzs saww or a bulldozzer if you will and then game one I think Edwards was the best player on the floor it’s gone back and forth yic has had that title a couple times two and a half I’ll say Edwards has had a 2 and a half between Games 1 4 and six who’s going to be the best player on the floor in game seven is it gonna be joic is it gonna be Ant guess it’s possible it could be Jamal maybe it’s Rudy goar maybe it’s Carl Anthony towns maybe it’s Aaron Gordon like who’s gonna be the hero who’s gonna be the guy that you’re going to remember as the one who saved or the one who just killed the Nuggets if it’s joic Denver’s going to have a great opportunity obviously and if it’s Edwards it’s going to be an uphill battle because often in these situations the team with the best player wins the series I think the yic is the best player in the world I think he’s proven that over and over and over again but I think that Edwards we’re witnessing this in real time in these playoffs has elevated his game to the level where he is in a new tier he is not quite in jokic’s tier but with the Nuggets not having the Personnel needed in order to really match up with him they are up a Creek in trying to slow him down so they’re going to have to dig deep they’re going to have to find a way to make sure that he is not the best player on the floor and this is funny from Nick Wilson cat going off like a 30 point triple 38 Point triple double to win it would ruin so many narratives that would be so horrible like can you imagine a worst way to lose like that would be that would be painful um knock on W but look the way the yic was standing on the sidelines during the fourth quarter of game six he never sat down he just watched he looked like he was in a concerning amount of pain but also that he was ruminating on how best he could win the next game and you know that he’s thinking about it you know he’s going to be mentally prepared you know he’s going to be physically prepared and if he can put the team on his back it alleviates the pressure from Murray it alleviates the pressure from mpj where they don’t have to be elite they just have to be found we’ll see what happens I’m I’m very curious to see what they decide to do I’m curious to see how this game is going to ultimately pan out game six it’s horrible disgusting gross not where a champion needs to be they have an opportunity the Nuggets do to wipe that slate clean in game seven and we’ll have plenty of time to talk about how they can do that either tomorrow or Sunday with swiper we’ll see what happens everybody that is going to do it for this episode of pickaxe and roll brought to you by our good friends over at Bed online in number 38 thank you so much for tuning into the show today really appreciate all the love and support on the podcast as always hit that like button that subscribe button on the way out and make sure to check out all the things that we’ve got going on over at the Mile High Sports YouTube channel thank you so much we’ll talk to you guys very soon

Ryan Blackburn reacts to the Denver Nuggets 115-70 blowout loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves in Game 6 as the series evens up at 3-3. Nuggets-Timberwolves will go to Game 7 on Sunday. Ryan discusses the struggles of Jamal Murray, Michael Porter Jr., and the bench regressing to the mean on the road. Nikola Jokic was fine, but even a spectacular Jokic wouldn’t have saved Denver last night. Ryan goes over what happened and what’s next for the Nuggets as they begin preparations for Game 7.

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