(Photo by Matthew Stockman/Getty Images)
The Denver Nuggets won’t join the exclusive group of back-to-back NBA champions.
Mike Malone’s team overcame a 0-2 deficit with three consecutive wins, getting momentum back in their favor and looking like the same dominant team they had been all season long.
Then, the young and hungry Minnesota Timberwolves stormed right back to take care of business.
Sometimes, you can tell the very moment a team falls apart in the playoffs, and you just know they’re not going to be back next season.
However, that’s not the case with this Denver Nuggets team, at least not according to Coach Malone.
Following the loss, he had his players’ backs and claimed that this wasn’t ‘fatal,’ stating that it was just a momentary delay and that they would be back (via Michael Scotto).
Nuggets coach Michael Malone: “This is just a momentary delay. Failure is not fatal. We’ll be back.” pic.twitter.com/wjdXynsTVc
— Michael Scotto (@MikeAScotto) May 20, 2024
He’s right on point.
This never looked like a last dance for this team or anything like that at all.
If anything, the Timberwolves’ roster and lineup seemed tailor-made to take them down, and they should be back next season.
They will continue to stand a chance for as long as Nikola Jokic is out there, and Jamal Murray is clearly far from 100% healthy right now.
Aaron Gordon and Michael Porter Jr. will continue to be major factors for this team, and they’re both under contract for a little longer, so it’s not like their window has shut down.
Now, we’ll have a new NBA champion, and this kind of defeat puts in perspective just how difficult it is to win consecutive titles in this league.
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