Denver Nuggets head coach Michael Malone had some cutting words for his team following their Game 2 loss to the Miami Heat on Sunday night.
He said the lack of effort he saw from his players was “a huge concern.”
However, Kendrick Perkins believes that Malone should look at himself and his own choices instead of just his players.
“Michael Malone is calling out his team, but who’s calling out Michael Malone?” Perkins asked on Monday’s First Take.
.@KendrickPerkins says Michael Malone needs to "hold himself accountable" for the Nuggets Game 2 loss 👀
"Michael Malone is calling out his team, but who's calling out Michael Malone?" pic.twitter.com/dw02o2CNbo
— First Take (@FirstTake) June 5, 2023
Malone had problems with the way that his team wasn’t defending the Heat and the way they weren’t making pivotal shots.
There were multiple Denver players who were cold from the field all night long, including Michael Porter Jr. and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, who scored just five and six points, respectively.
While that is definitely a problem, Perkins said that Malone needs to examine himself and the choices he made, especially defensively.
He said that the coach isn’t using his players as well as he could and isn’t taking advantage of their size and skill sets on both ends of the court.
Meanwhile, Miami’s Erik Spoelstra was able to count on his team not just for offense but defense too.
The Finals are all about two big things: energy and adjustments.
The players need to bring the energy, the coaching staff needs to bring the adjustments.
It felt like the Nuggets were missing both in the final quarter of Game 2 and they will definitely need to address that as the series now moves down to Florida.
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