DENVER — Following Minnesota’s stunning 119-114 comeback victory over Denver in Monday night’s playoff matchup, Timberwolves forward Jaden McDaniels delivered his most impactful statement off the court.
McDaniels didn’t hold back when describing the defensive capabilities of the entire Nuggets roster, including star players Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray.
“Go after Jokic, Jamal, all the bad defenders,” McDaniels stated after contributing 14 points and three assists to the victory. “Tim Hardaway (Jr.), Cam Johnson, Aaron Gordon, the whole team, just go at them.”
When pressed about whether he considered Denver’s entire roster defensively weak, McDaniels confirmed his assessment.
“Yeah, they’re all bad defenders,” McDaniels responded.
Minnesota’s dramatic turnaround from a 19-point disadvantage has leveled the opening-round playoff series at one game apiece. The series now moves to Minneapolis for Thursday evening’s Game 3. Anthony Edwards powered the comeback with 30 points while battling through a knee injury, also grabbing 10 rebounds.
“They don’t got people that can defend the rim,” McDaniels continued. “We’re still more athletic than them and just got to be able to finish when we do.”
Denver’s star duo of Jokic and Murray combined for impressive individual statistics — Jokic recorded 24 points and 15 defensive rebounds while Murray contributed 30 points. However, both players struggled significantly in the final quarter, shooting just 2 of 12 combined for four total points. Murray had an opportunity to force overtime with a three-point attempt in the game’s final moments but chose a two-point shot attempt instead.
The shot missed.
“I was happy he took the two points,” Edwards commented. “I thought he had a good look at a 3 when he first came off but yeah, he took the 2-pointer. I guess if he made it, we would have been in a free-throw situation. But yeah, I’m kind of happy he took the 2-pointer.”
Murray acknowledged his shooting struggles following the defeat.
“I didn’t make enough shots tonight,” Murray said. “That’s really about it. We all could have played better. It’s not all on one person, that’s just the way the game goes sometimes. They played hard as well. It was a good game. I thought we had the game in our hands, but we just didn’t make enough shots, in my opinion.”
