The befuddling question is, why did Coach Malone not apply a successful game plan to start the game? The Nuggets corralled the Mavericks two nights before by hedging and trapping the guards.
Atlanta had the same type of guards as the Mavericks. They had three point shooters, faster than the Nuggets, with a lot of passing and movement. But Malone let Denver settle in to a laid back almost zone laziness, which did not work. We know he wanted to clog the paint, but it did not work. The Hawks shot 61% the first half.
Denver got killed by threes and blow-buys.