Nuggets coach rips team's defense, calls it the worst in the league
The bottom of the playoff picture in the Western Conference is a complete disaster at the moment, which is theoretically good news for a team like the 14-21 Nuggets. Even after Tuesday night's disappointing 120-113 home loss to the Kings, Denver remains just a game-and-a-half out of the eighth and final spot, with more than half the regular season still to be played.
But the reality is, the Nuggets -- who have lost three straight and five of their last seven after briefly seeing some positive results by inserting Nikola Jokic into the starting lineup -- aren't going to be able to make any type of run unless the defense massively improves.
Head coach Michael Malone knows this perhaps better than anyone and ripped what he called "a joke" of an effort in the team's latest loss.
"We have the worst defense in the NBA," Malone said, via ESPN. "That is the bottom line. It is embarrassing how we go out and attempt to defend every night. That is something that we have to try and fix as soon as possible, because it's at an all-time low right now, and that is a huge concern of mine."
"No veteran leadership stepping up, don't hear anyone speaking, taking the lead," Malone said. "We have two young guys trying to speak up on the team, which you applaud, but you need some leadership to shine and step up."
