Denver Nuggets head coach Michael Malone blames his team's defense for their four-game losing streak.
As reported by Mike Singer of The Denver Post, Malone broke down exactly where his team is having trouble. He pointed out that his players had problems in containing their foes one-on-one, in pick-n-roll situations, and overall discipline:
“Last four (games), the defense just fell off big time,” Malone said. “And there are a lot of things to that, a lot of levels. It’s one-on-one containment, the blow-bys are at epic levels right now, just the inability to guard one-on-one and then just having pick-n-roll awareness.”
For Malone, this sudden lack of defense is frustrating because his team proved that they can lockdown earlier in the year:
“So much of it is a lack of discipline and focus right now, and that’s probably the most frustrating thing because earlier in the year, we’ve shown that we can do it and do it well for extended periods,” he said. “It doesn’t take a lot of intelligence to say ‘How do I get back to doing what we were doing earlier?’ ”
Apart from Malone's observation, the statistics also show. Two games ago, the Nuggets had the number one defensive rating. Now, they've dropped to six overall with a 105.3 rating.
The Nuggets started off with a strong 9-1 record. Now, they've fallen to 9-5 which is still a decent record in the young season. They will host the Atlanta Hawks on Thursday with hopes of snapping the four-game skid. After which, they will pack their bags for a three-game road trip.
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