Scott Hastings, Denver Nuggets Former Player / TV Analyst

Scott thank you for taking the time to join us.

Scott Hastings is joining us. I know this is a different scene from last year. What is your observation over these first two games? Listen, Denver did not lose because of any officiating, but the officials let them play early. Denver thought they got fouls instead of just adjusting and play to, okay, this is how we're going to play tonight. I felt last night they let them get into their head and once they got into their head, once Murray took a charge and probably watched him back on replays and stuff, it probably should have been an offensive foul.

One called, you got to play now. I said, okay, that's what they're going to love, that's how physical the game's going to be. Instead, I thought I really got in their head. And once you melt down against another professional team, very, very unlikely you're going to be able to get it back. They weren't. They got pounded. Now saying that, I'll just give some props to Minnesota and a couple things that people forget about this. Listen, I was worried about Minnesota last year. To be honest with you, when they made their run to the championship, the only team really that they played that I was really concerned with was Minnesota.

And here's the reasoning why. One, the president of basketball operations, Tim Connolly, built this team in Denver. He understands who they are and what they are. He left, went to Minnesota.

I tell him when I see him, he's dead to me now, but he left and went to Minnesota. Their head coach and their assistant coach were both assistant coach for Denver as they were building this thing up, as they were implementing the offense, as they were making Joker more of a point forward or guard or point center or whatever his position. They were instrumental in development, so you've got the two main guys in control on the floor understand all the weaknesses, understand where they go. And going back to Tim Connolly, when he went there and I saw this happening, when everybody was questioning Rudy Gobert and doing all this, why are you making this trade? You sold out your future.

Not many people worried about them selling out their future right now. He knew what Denver was. He knew where Denver was going. And I think from day one, he started setting up a franchise team that could beat Denver.

Can they play with other people? If they play like they did the last two games, they'll get to find out. So they're a scary team. It started last year, they were a scary team. Remember, Nas Reed was hurt and McDaniel was hurt, so neither of those two guys played.

But they've got long, tall wings that they can always sub in that are both physical, both quick. You put on Jamal Murray, so now you've got size, quickness and physicality on him. And so Murray, not shooting well, he was three of 18 last night. You've got Michael Porter who had a really good series against the Lakers, but again, he's one of seven from three last night. He was averaging almost three threes made a game in that Lakers series. He all of a sudden stopped shooting the ball well last night. And so what that allows you to do, and I think Denver's final number was 25% from three, but that allows you to do is, I could sell out now and maybe not traditional double teams on Joker. If you watched last night, whenever he got the ball and started moving the center, there's bodies all around him.

Now that congests the passing lane, you've got people leaning on him, which makes it tougher to get to the rim. And they did a good job. And you know, it's funny, I was listening to a radio show driving home today, and they were talking about Joker had two bad games. And I'm like, well, I think there's a whole lot of guys would like to have a playoff game 32-8-9. And then I think last night he was 16 rebounds.

16 and 8. And he sucked. And this is the same thing with Anthony Edwards, who's an unbelievable player. But if Towns weren't playing good, and if Connolly weren't playing good, and Nas Reed, all these other weapons around him weren't playing good, guess what Denver could do?

Now they could concentrate everything on Ants and maybe slow him down, and could you change the game? So one of the keys for Joker is other guys have got to have their games up, and your two best perimeter guys in that starting unit are not shooting the ball and playing well right now. Now without a shadow of a doubt, we've got former Nugget and current analyst Scott Hastings here with us, the JR sport re-show Coast to Coast.

Well Scott, there's a couple of guys that we would be talking about, but they're not here. And they were part of the championship squad last year, whether it's Bruce Brown or you want to look at a Jeff Green. How important is it to this squad that they're not here right now? What effect does it have on this team? Well, what they've lost off the bench, especially in Bruce, but Jeff would have his moments. You lost with Bruce, a guy that with two or three was struggling scoring, and Porter struggled in the postseason for the most part last year. Bruce Brown was eating up a lot of minutes. Bruce Brown was averaging 27 minutes a game off the bench.

I think the guys off the bench this year are averaging 12, 14 maybe. So not only did he eat minutes, but he ate minutes very productively. You know, they don't probably win game four in the finals in Miami without Bruce Brown. And he did that a number of times throughout. So you miss that guy that all of a sudden, maybe somebody's struggling.

Here comes Brucie and it gets back up and gets going. Jeff Green was your physical guy. He's a little taller than Aaron Gordon. Now you can rest Aaron instead of have to make him play the small ball five.

Jeff would come in and they would do that. And listen, this is a veteran guy that they can still play. He's a fabulous leader and he brought an element of toughness. I mean, he was a guy that didn't back down. And so to me, you lost a scoring versatile two, three, one.

In fact, he played backup point in the postseason. One, two, three guy. And you lost another guy who was just the kindest and nicest guy in the world that I've, you know, as far as all the guys I've got to cover. But listen, now you get down to it, he'd have a little dog in him.

He wasn't going to back down to anything. And so they missed that coming off the bench. You replace it really with the majority of the guys that played Reggie Jackson point, but he's been banged up for about the last 30 games, hurt his ankle again in game two. And then guys that are, uh, in the second year, Christian Brown, which, which I think you got to kind of go with him. He's got a physicality Watson's a young second year player and, and they just haven't found any groove in any kind of spark really in the last. By the last third of the season that you can count on in a consistent basis. And that's, that's where the games change.

Listen, we talk about stars all the time and stars when you games, but there's a lot of support around those stars. When, you know, when, when these other guys are, when it went up to Kupos winning an MVP, there's a whole lot of other guys having, having really good years around them. And, and Denver just does not have that, uh, in these first two games. And, and to be honest with you for me, uh, and probably, you know, for me watching in a far is they're the defending champions and, and dude, they have their soul taken a little bit last night. So it'll be real interesting somewhere. Tracy McGrady is going, Hey, you can go with games three and four on the road.

I know I've done it. You just couldn't win those home games, but you know, you go and you win game three. I think all the pressure now flips back over to Minnesota cause they cannot lose game four and you played yourself back in the series. But the discouraging thing is what, what sign did you see last night that they were willing to fight through this?

They lost your composure and ended up losing the game poorly. Scott Hastings is here with us, the JR sport reshow, the infinity sports network. We just got a little bit of news that's just come in. Jamal Murray fined $100,000 for throwing that heat pad. And then also that towel towards and on the court last night in game two. Are you surprised that he was fined and not suspended Scott?

Um, I think both are justified. I, I said on my radio show today, I said at minimum, he'll, he's going to get a healthy fight. Um, he hasn't had a lot of other, I don't think he's had any other infractions.

He's probably frustrated. Maybe they took that into account. They took the account into the seriousness of, you know, you, you, you, I don't say you change the course of the, of a, of a playoff pattern, uh, because they've gone to two games on the road already. But no, I'm not surprised. But to be honest with you, I wouldn't have been surprised you had they suspended him either. I, I, I think the cry or the punishment would have fit the crime either way. And I know these guys make a lot of money, but, um, and I'd like to have one year of it, but I'd like to have the fine money to be honest with you. Um, I mean, that's still a, that's still a, Hey, that's, that's still a big, big swipe for, for being a little frustrated.

And most definitely is a Scott final question for you. You're, you're around this team. You've been around this team, you cover this team, you played for this team.

Are they going to turn things around? Are they going back to the West finals or are they kind of out of luck right now? Well, I, I, you know, it's really funny and I was on the business team the second year they won on their back to back. And there's a difference when you're hungry to get one compared to trying to retain one, you know, do it again. I think you probably lose a little hunger and you got to find something within you that, that sparks that intensity that you had last year.

I'll be real honest with you. I didn't think they played very good in that Laker series. Uh, and they handled the business for one, but they were down in every game, 12 to 15, you know, came back in the one game too, but they were down 20. So they really not, they really not played well yet. And I, I just don't know if that's, you know, if it's fatigue, you know, I've told somebody the other day about last year, 10 days ago, uh, Minnesota was already done with their season and Denver played two more months after that. So, uh, you know, is a fatigue and it's not physical, although cause everybody's tired physically at this time, it's that mental fatigue grinding the season, you know, tie in time for the best record in the West. And do you just have that mental dog in you right now to say, okay, let's do it again. Are they talented enough to go in and win game three? Yes.

But again, like I said a while ago, I just, I wanted to see a heartbeat late in that, in that game just to give a little hope. And they, they really didn't show it. So it's, it's, it's discouraging. Do they have the capability? Yes.

Will they? Well, Tim Connolly and Chris Finch and Mike Inori, we got a lot to say about it. Hey, well, Scott, listen, I know you're out there to go out there and hand out some fouls if they need it. So I'll be looking for you sooner than later. Okay. Hey, I'll play like, I'll play like that Iowa girls basketball today when they go three on three, you know, defense on one end, offense on the other.

I can do that. I hear you, Scott. We'll be staying tuned.

Hey, I don't think anybody expected this at the start. 2-0 Minnesota. Scott, thank you so much for lending your expertise from both the player and as an analyst. We appreciate you.

Hopefully the Nuggets have so much more basketball in front of them. We'll stay tuned. Okay? All right, my brother. Appreciate you.