David Adelman Calls on Nuggets to Close Quarters More Effectively

The Denver Nuggets came up just short of a fourth-straight win on the new regular season vs. the Portland Trail Blazers on Halloween night, falling 107-109. The Trail Blazers dominated the fourth quarter 38-26 for a valiant comeback effort, and effectively drops the Nuggets to 0-1 in their NBA Cup Group Play slate.

The Nuggets were on the cusp of piecing together a win in the final moments of the fourth quarter. But after a deflating Toumani Camara block on Cameron Johnson, a foul and two free throws for Jerami Grant to go up by two points, and a missed Nikola Jokic buzzer-beater to tie, Denver dropped their second loss on the season.

It's an end result that head coach David Adelman credits to allowing simple mistakes.

"Should've won the game, and a lot of that was us," Adelman said post-game. "The mistakes we made, the turnovers, we fouled a lot in the fourth quarter. They shot 13 free throws. It's the anatomy of how to lose a game in the NBA."

Nuggets' David Adelman Blames Simple Mistakes in Loss vs. Blazers

Oct 27, 2025; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Denver Nuggets head coach David Adelman questions referee Mousa Dagher about a call for the Minnesota Timberwolves in the third quarter at Target Center. Mandatory Credit: Bruce Kluckhohn-Imagn Images | Bruce Kluckhohn-Imagn Images

The Nuggets' lead over Portland even reached double-digits on multiple occasions throughout the night–– but it wouldn't be a leg up that would hold, especially as the flaws began to show at the end of the fourth quarter.

The Blazers had six names with 10 or more points led by Deni Avdija's 23, found their way to claw back at the end of the fourth with some icing on the cake from Gordon's free throw, and now head back to Denver 3-2.

The way forward for Adelman? The success starts will closing quarters effectively and efficiently on both ends of the ball.

"I just think being more efficient on both ends. Getting back, not giving up three offensive rebounds in one play. Just, the little things matter at the end of quarters, and that's what kept them in the game. I thought there were multiple times where we pushed it to seven, to nine, to eleven, and we didn't sustain responsibility on both ends."

When the little things fall through consistently, especially in late-game situations, that's not quite a winning formula. For the Nuggets, Nikola Jokic did his usual damage with a near-triple double, and Jamal Murray stood out in his own right with a team-leading 22 points.

Yet, when the details aren't tuned up in the final moments, that can be the difference between a win and a loss, which is exactly how the events transpired in Portland.

Now with a three-game home stretch ahead, the Nuggets will have time to breathe and get their ducks in a row before continuing on the long road of the regular season, where a clear emphasis for Adelman's group will be staying refined on both ends of the ball for all 12 minutes of all four quarters.

Nuggets' David Adelman Blames Simple Mistakes in Loss vs. Blazers

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