The Minnesota Timberwolves put a beating on the Denver Nuggets last night. The Wolves, led by Anthony Edwards, completely outplayed the defending champions. They were everywhere. Their physical play and relentless defense made the Nuggets seem pedestrian in comparison. Anthony Edwards and Karl Anthony-Towns combined for 54 points to make the series 2-0 Wolves. The OWlves were without their anchor on defense, Rudy Gobert, who missed the game for the birth of his first child, but it didn't matter. The Nuggets were irate throughout the game, and it felt like the referees were against them. Jamal Murray got so heated at a call that he threw a heating pack at a ref while he was seated on the bench.
In the first half of Game 2, Jamal Murray and the Denver Nuggets did not have the best of time. Denver got blasted by the No. 1 defense and couldn't react, so Jamal Murray and some other Denver players started taking it out on the officials. During the second quarter, as tempers continued to flare, the cameras caught Jamal Murray tossing something at the ref from the bench area. Jamal Murray, upset with a no-call on Karl Anthony Towns, chucked a heating pad at one of the officials.
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Jamal Murray Went After The Refs
In the second quarter, cameras caught Murray, who appeared to have thrown a heating pad at official Mark Davis. Jamal Murray is an emotional player in a good way most of the time, but it seems like his emotions get the better of him. A generous reading of the situation is that the pad slipped out of his hand, which is entirely possible. However, with his behavior and the rest of the Nugget's behaviors towards the refs last night, it would make sense that it was on purpose. Murray was also seen giving a gesture to the refs that they were cheating later in the game. All in all, it's a bad look for Jamal.
Murray’s coach, Mike Malone, was surprisingly not given a technical foul for running on the court and getting in Mark Davis’ face, cruising the official out. Davis showed immense restraint at that moment and allowed Malone to go back to his bench unscathed, which was when he could have easily tossed him out of the game in the first quarter. It is not going to get easier for the Nuggets. They have to find a way to get Nikola Jokic going and learn how to cope with the Wolves' defense. Overall, the defending champs are in serious trouble.
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