Denver Nuggets coach Michael Malone had a heated discussion with a couple of Minnesota Timberwolves fans during Game 3 of West semis. Defending champions Nuggets registered a blowout 117-90 victory after losing the first two games at home and the loss might have prompted the fans to get involved more than required.

“He didn’t like my haircut, and I told him that I like my haircut,” Malone said about the altercation, via the Denver Post. “And we just kind of went from there.” The fans were eventually escorted out of the arena.

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“That happens at times in a hostile environment, and people get a little liquid courage I guess sometimes,” Malone said. “And they think they can just say whatever they want to anybody. And I’m not allowing that to happen.”

“Listen man, these fans here are great,” Malone added. “I mean, that was an amazing atmosphere. You live for moments like that and opportunities like that, to go out there and perform when you’ve got 20,000 people screaming at you. But unfortunately there’s always gonna be people that want to get a little bit more involved in the game, and make it personal. And that’s unfortunate.”

As for the game, Denver showed the calibre of defending champions for the first time in the series. For Denver, Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray scored 24-points each while Aaron Gordon dropped 13 and Michael Porter Jr. managed 21.

For the Wolves, Anthony Edwards was once again the highest scorer with 19 points but it wasn't enough. The game started with Denver taking eight-point lead in the first quarter after outscoring Minnesota 28-20. The Nuggets again dropped 28 in the next quarter while the Timberwolves could manage only 21.

The defending champs, already ahead by 15 points at the start of the second half, added 12 more points to their lead after outscoring Minnesota 37-25 n 3Q. The final 12 minutes were just a formality with both teams scoring 24 each and the Nuggets winning the game by 27 points.

Denver Nuggets coach Michael Malone had a heated discussion with a couple of Minnesota Timberwolves fans during Game 3 of West semis. Defending champions Nuggets registered a blowout 117-90 victory after losing the first two games at home and the loss might have prompted the fans to get involved more than required.

Denver Nuggets coach Michael Malone had a heated discussion with a couple of Minnesota Timberwolves fans during Game 3 of West semis. Defending champions Nuggets registered a blowout 117-90 victory after losing the first two games at home and the loss might have prompted the fans to get involved more than required. “He didn’t like my haircut, and I told him that I like my haircut,” Malone said about the altercation, via the Denver Post. “And we just kind of went from there.” The fans were eventually escorted out of the arena. Also Read: Golf: 'Have disagreements on...,' Rory McIlroy on relationship with Tiger Woods “That happens at times in a hostile environment, and people get a little liquid courage I guess sometimes,” Malone said. “And they think they can just say whatever they want to anybody. And I’m not allowing that to happen.” “Listen man, these fans here are great,” Malone added. “I mean, that was an amazing atmosphere. You live for moments like that and opportunities like that, to go out there and perform when you’ve got 20,000 people screaming at you. But unfortunately there’s always gonna be people that want to get a little bit more involved in the game, and make it personal. And that’s unfortunate.” As for the game, Denver showed the calibre of defending champions for the first time in the series. For Denver, Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray scored 24-points each while Aaron Gordon dropped 13 and Michael Porter Jr. managed 21. For the Wolves, Anthony Edwards was once again the highest scorer with 19 points but it wasn't enough. The game started with Denver taking eight-point lead in the first quarter after outscoring Minnesota 28-20. The Nuggets again dropped 28 in the next quarter while the Timberwolves could manage only 21. The defending champs, already ahead by 15 points at the start of the second half, added 12 more points to their lead after outscoring Minnesota 37-25 n 3Q. The final 12 minutes were just a formality with both teams scoring 24 each and the Nuggets winning the game by 27 points.

Playoffs: Timberwolves fans ousted after altercation with Denver Nuggets coach Michael Malone in Game 3

Denver Nuggets coach Michael Malone called out his team's defense in the last quarter of Game 2 of the NBA Finals, saying the team didn't play well. Malone also pointed out that the team didn't play well in the first game's final quarter as well.

While the Nuggets won the first game, they lost the second game after the Miami Heat were able to hold on to a three-point lead for a 111-108 victory after outscoring Denver 36-25 in 4Q.

"Let's talk about effort," said Malone post game. "This is the NBA Finals. We are talking about effort. That's a huge concern of mine. You guys probably thought I was just making up some storyline after Game 1 when I said we didn't play well. We didn't play well.

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"Tonight, the starting lineup to start the game, it was 10-2 Miami. Start of the third quarter, they scored 11 points in [just over two minutes]. We had guys out there that were just, whether feeling sorry for themselves for not making shots or thinking they can just turn it on or off -- this is not the preseason, this is not the regular season. This is the NBA Finals. That, to me, is really, really perplexing, disappointing."

Denver star Nikola Jokic who scored 41 points in the game, said, "They just put us in their rhythm. And we didn't want to play that way, and they want to, obviously. But maybe just to play a little bit faster is going to help us."

Malone lamented the show his defense put in the final 12 minutes of the game and said that Miami were able to get points in whatever form they wanted.

"They started the fourth quarter 13-2," said the head coach. "To me, the wheels really fell off to start that fourth quarter. They were getting whatever they wanted, 3s, layups, and that allowed them once again to sit back in their zone offense, slow the game down, and we had a hard time getting stops -- and then we had a hard time getting made baskets on the other end.

"Our defense has to be a hell of a lot better. That's two fourth quarters, Game 1 and Game 2, where our fourth-quarter defense has been nonexistent."

The Nuggets, who are playing in their first ever NBA Finals, were outworked by Miami, acknowledged Malone and said that it was the team's least disciplined playoff game.

"Miami came in here and outworked us. And we were, by far, our least disciplined game of these 16 or 17 playoff games. So many breakdowns. They exploited every one of our breakdowns and scored. If we're going to try to go down there and regain control of this series and get home-court advantage back, we're going to have to outwork Miami, which we didn't do tonight, and our discipline is going to have to be off the charts," said the coach.

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Denver Nuggets coach Michael Malone called out his team's defense in the last quarter of Game 2 of the NBA Finals, saying the team didn't play well. Malone also pointed out that the team didn't play well in the first game's final quarter as well.

Denver Nuggets coach Michael Malone called out his team's defense in the last quarter of Game 2 of the NBA Finals, saying the team didn't play well. Malone also pointed out that the team didn't play well in the first game's final quarter as well. While the Nuggets won the first game, they lost the second game after the Miami Heat were able to hold on to a three-point lead for a 111-108 victory after outscoring Denver 36-25 in 4Q. "Let's talk about effort," said Malone post game. "This is the NBA Finals. We are talking about effort. That's a huge concern of mine. You guys probably thought I was just making up some storyline after Game 1 when I said we didn't play well. We didn't play well. Also Read: Heat hold on to three-point lead to beat Nuggets in thriller Game 2 "Tonight, the starting lineup to start the game, it was 10-2 Miami. Start of the third quarter, they scored 11 points in [just over two minutes]. We had guys out there that were just, whether feeling sorry for themselves for not making shots or thinking they can just turn it on or off -- this is not the preseason, this is not the regular season. This is the NBA Finals. That, to me, is really, really perplexing, disappointing." Denver star Nikola Jokic who scored 41 points in the game, said, "They just put us in their rhythm. And we didn't want to play that way, and they want to, obviously. But maybe just to play a little bit faster is going to help us." Malone lamented the show his defense put in the final 12 minutes of the game and said that Miami were able to get points in whatever form they wanted. "They started the fourth quarter 13-2," said the head coach. "To me, the wheels really fell off to start that fourth quarter. They were getting whatever they wanted, 3s, layups, and that allowed them once again to sit back in their zone offense, slow the game down, and we had a hard time getting stops -- and then we had a hard time getting made baskets on the other end. "Our defense has to be a hell of a lot better. That's two fourth quarters, Game 1 and Game 2, where our fourth-quarter defense has been nonexistent." The Nuggets, who are playing in their first ever NBA Finals, were outworked by Miami, acknowledged Malone and said that it was the team's least disciplined playoff game. "Miami came in here and outworked us. And we were, by far, our least disciplined game of these 16 or 17 playoff games. So many breakdowns. They exploited every one of our breakdowns and scored. If we're going to try to go down there and regain control of this series and get home-court advantage back, we're going to have to outwork Miami, which we didn't do tonight, and our discipline is going to have to be off the charts," said the coach. WATCH WION LIVE HERE You can now write for wionews.com and be a part of the community. Share your stories and opinions with us here.

NBA Finals: Coach Michael Malone rips apart Denver Nuggets' defence after Game 2 loss

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Playoffs: Timberwolves fans ousted after altercation with Denver Nuggets coach Michael Malone in Game 3

NBA Finals: Coach Michael Malone rips apart Denver Nuggets' defence after Game 2 loss