Jaden McDaniels calling every Denver Nuggets player a bad defender after the Minnesota Timberwolves' Game 2 win was bound to ruffle some feathers. Nuggets head coach David Adelman responded in a rather curious way.
"I can't wait for his podcast," Adelman said.
Adelman went on to mention that "narrative is really interesting," claiming "we've gotten lazy as a society," before bragging about the Nuggets' 109 defensive rating in the playoffs, the sixth-best mark in the playoffs (entering Wednesday's games). To that, I say congratulations -- you still ranked 21st (per Cleaning the Glass) over the course of an 82-game season.Â
Clearly, Adelman has no idea who McDaniels is. Allow me to inform you, Mr. Adelman: McDaniels is one of the quietest players in the league, but he's also brutally honest, authentic, and someone who stands on business. McDaniels didn't make these comments for fame or social media -- he made them because he truly believed them, and he disdains the Nuggets.Â
And unlike Adelman's comments, McDaniels' comments hold up under scrutiny.
On a side note, the thought of McDaniels having a podcast is hilarious. I don't think any episode would hit the 10-minute mark, but you'd best believe he'd share some crazy (and honest) takes. Also, it's worth noting that Nuggets forward Cam Johnson is a podcaster.Â
Adelman can say whatever he wants, but the Nuggets have a bad defense
Okay, I'll admit not every single Nuggets player is a bad defender like McDaniels said. I'd classify Aaron Gordon, Christian Braun, and certainly the injured Peyton Watson as positive defenders. Generally, though, the Nuggets are a subpar defensive team, and they certainly have plenty of defenders to target in isolation (including Jamal Murray and Nikola Jokic).Â
As noted, they ranked 21st in defensive rating during the regular season. For what it's worth, this is the worst offensive/defensive unit of any playoff team! Beyond that, they rank 28th in both opponent field goal percentage at the rim and clutch defense. Â
Adelman's mentioning their playoff DRTG two games into the series is misleading, or to use his word, lazy. For starters, it's a two-game sample size; the 82 games before showed us that the Nuggets are a poor defense by every statistical measure.Â
Additionally, this heavily factors in an outlier Game 1 performance, where the Wolves posted 105 points, and Denver's defense posted a 103 DRTG per Cleaning the Glass. Game 2 was a different story, though, as the Wolves started attacking the Nuggets in isolation and got to the rim at a higher rate.
The results were a 116.8 DRTG for the Nuggets, which translates to a bottom-10 mark -- and this accounts for a first quarter that was more in line with Game 1.Â
McDaniels should be able to point out these flaws because he's a fantastic defender, and he has dominated the Nuggets all year. Notably, he is shooting 71.4 percent within eight feet of the hoop this series, and he averaged 20.3 points against Denver in the regular season.
If the Wolves keep attacking the Nuggets in pick-and-rolls and isolation, they have a path to upsetting Denver. The Wolves' athleticism and speed are clear advantages against a flawed Nuggets' defense.Â
Regardless of what Adelman wants to say, there's no denying McDaniels' comments are largely correct, and they certainly had nothing to do with podcasting or society.Â
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