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Nuggets Coach Needed Just Three Words to Describe Game 2 Trouncing vs. Thunder

Adelman didn't mince words after the Nuggets' 43-point loss.

Tim Capurso

Adelman's Nuggets were defeated by 43 points on Wednesday night in Oklahoma City.
Adelman's Nuggets were defeated by 43 points on Wednesday night in Oklahoma City. / Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images
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The Denver Nuggets were on the wrong end of NBA playoffs history on Wednesday night.

The Nuggets yielded the most points (87) in a first half in playoffs history en route to a 149-106 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder in Game 2 of the conference semifinals. And Denver's interim coach David Adelman did not mince words after the shellacking.

"We got punked," Adelman told reporters after the game, flatly summing up the affair. "And we didn't play well enough. And they came out with the right intensity and we didn't..."

Nuggets three-time MVP Nikola Jokic was equally blunt.

"Basically it was one team playing tonight," Jokic said. "The turnovers, the misses. They were aggressive. They were going by us. They were rebounding the ball, they were just better. They were much, much better than us and that's why the score is so bad."

The series is tied at a game apiece after the Nuggets captured Game 1 on a buzzer-beater. But Adelman took no solace in that fact.

"...I'm not sitting here talking about the 1-1 thing," Adelman continued. "Not tonight. We're not gonna flush that [the blowout loss]. We've gotta be better. We know that. That being said, it's nice to know that you've got a win under your belt but that's not what this is right now in the present. So, we'll react the right way, like we did in Game 3 in LA."

"Bring a different intensity. Look at what they did differently. React accordingly. And I would expect a much better effort from our guys on Friday night in Denver."

The Nuggets were bested by the Los Angeles Clippers by 34 points in Game 3 of their first round series, then went on to win the next two games and the series. They'll have a chance to respond similarly in Game 3 against the Nuggets on Friday night at 10:00 p.m. ET.

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Tim Capurso
TIM CAPURSO

Tim Capurso is a staff writer on the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. Prior to joining SI in November 2023, he wrote for RotoBaller and ClutchPoints, where he was the lead editor for MLB, college football and NFL coverage. A lifelong Yankees and Giants fan, Capurso grew up just outside New York City and now lives near Philadelphia. When he's not writing, he enjoys reading, exercising and spending time with his family, including his three-legged cat Willow, who, unfortunately, is an Eagles fan.

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