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The Denver Nuggets fell 113-96 to the Minnesota Timberwolves on Thursday night at Target Center, with head coach David Adelman offering a detailed postgame assessment after his team slipped to a 2-1 deficit in the first-round series.
“Well, the shooting really put us behind the eight ball to start the game,” Adelman said, pointing to Denver’s slow offensive start despite holding Minnesota to 25 points in the first quarter. “We only gave up 25 points in the first quarter. That’s actually a very good number. We just had a hard time making shots tonight.”
Adelman emphasized the lack of offensive force as the key separator in the loss. “Our physicality offensively has got to get better,” he said, while noting improvements on the other end. “I thought our physicality defensively in the second half was much better.”
The Nuggets coach also explained his rotation decisions, including going small in key stretches. “I went small. I tried to put a shooting lineup out there and that led to what we knew could happen: the size issue,” Adelman said. “They got to the paint and then if you double that with transition, you’re going to put yourself in a tough spot.”
Denver struggled to generate consistent scoring, finishing with just 39 points at halftime. “We have to understand on the road… you have to execute. You got to get great shots each time down,” Adelman said. The Nuggets shot 34% overall and 25% from three.
Nikola Jokic’s efficiency also came under scrutiny after a difficult night inside the arc. Adelman dismissed concerns. “He just missed. I really mean it,” he said. “These are things that he’s going to do. He had a tough night. It happens to players.”
Turnovers were not the central issue, but execution under pressure was. “We only had 10 turnovers in this game. It just was the pressure,” Adelman said. “When we got sped up from their pressure, that led to some unorganized possessions in the first half.”
Transition defense breakdowns also shifted momentum in Minnesota’s favor. “Every time we’d make a run, we gave up a runaway layup after a make or a miss,” Adelman said. “You can’t do that in a playoff game.”
Offensively, he pointed to better screening and cutting as necessary adjustments moving forward. “We got to screen better, we got to cut better. We got to handle the pressure much better than we did tonight,” he said.
Adelman also addressed how to elevate secondary scorers. “To get those guys going, they have to screen better,” he explained. “Sometimes you have to dumb things down to be better because it gets you organized.”
Despite missing key personnel like Aaron Gordon and defensive depth pieces, Adelman remained measured. “I’ll admit it, you’re gambling if you play small against their team,” he said.
Looking ahead to Game 4, the Nuggets coach kept his message steady. “Panic is not going to be there,” Adelman said. “But without the panic, there has to be a responsibility to get better for game four.”
