Jaden McDaniels, Nuggets Go Back and Forth Over 'Bad Defenders' Jab

Jaden McDaniels' remarkably blunt and direct commentary on the defensive abilities of several Nuggets players has added another level of intrigue to this first-round rivalry series, which continues with Game 3 in downtown Minneapolis on Thursday night.

You've undoubtedly seen the viral clip posted by the Star Tribune's Chris Hine from the visitor's locker room at Ball Arena in Denver late on Monday night. "They're all bad defenders," said McDaniels after calling out five Nuggets players by name and saying the Wolves need to go at them on that end.

Over the course of three days since then, McDaniels' comments have taken on a life of their own and become one of the big storylines heading into Game 3. Nuggets coaches and players, understandably, saw the clip and were asked about it by reporters.

"I can't wait for his podcast," Denver head coach David Adelman said. "He's a really good player, everybody has a sounding board nowadays. It'll help his social media."

"They just been saying a lot," said Cam Johnson, one of the players McDaniels named. "All season, all series. Let 'em talk. Let 'em get everything they want off their chest. We're cool with it."

"This is just a part of the rivalry," said Christian Braun. "It's part of what comes with it. I don't think it caught anybody off guard. He's kind of speaking his truth and what he believes, and we'll allow them to do that. We kind of want to take care of our own things to make sure we handle our business on our side."

"Brother, I don't care," said Aaron Gordon, another player McDaniels called out. Gordon (calf) will not play in Thursday night's game.

McDaniels himself then spoke to Timberwolves reporters on Thursday at shootaround. Because his comments and the Nuggets' subsequent reponses became a big story, he was asked about it. And he essentially stood on what he said.

"People have their own discussions," he said with a smile. "I'm just ready to play tonight and go win Game 3, for real."

Was he surprised that the quote blew up? "A little bit," he said. "But it's whatever. It's the playoffs, so that's probably why. I'm not tripping."

Did he see the Nuggets' responses? "You go on your phone, it's hard not to see it. But it's whatever. I said what I said, you know."

"I don't know what he's talking about," McDaniels said of Adelman's comments. "Podcast? Nah, that's not me."

Was it bold and unusual for McDaniels to call out several Nuggets players by name after two games in a best-of-seven series? It was. But the idea that he shouldn't have given them this kind of motivation or bulletin board material feels a bit silly. Were they not planning on competing as hard as possible in the playoffs anyways?

It'll be interesting to keep an eye on the Nuggets defenders in question — Nikola Jokic, Jamal Murray, Johnson, and Tim Hardaway Jr. — when McDaniels has the ball in Game 3. If further trash talk ensues, Jaden and the Wolves have never shied away from that kind of thing.

"Really, whoever's in our way to win the championship, you gotta have that aggression towards them," McDaniels said. "They're standing in our way to go win the championship, so we just gotta be like that."

Add us as a preferred source on Google