SKY HIGH. >> HOW HARD IS IT JUST TO ABSORB A LOSS LIKE THIS AFTER AFTER GOING AHEAD BY 20. >> NEXT QUESTION. >> MAN THE SEASON'S OVER. >> THAT'S WHAT'S HARD BEING UP 20. THE SEASON'S OVER. YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND THAT. THE SEASON'S OVER. IT'S HARD. THE BETTER TEAM WON. SO I'M TAKING NOTHING AWAY FROM MINNESOTA. >> BUT WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE FACT THAT ALL THE TEAMS THAT ARE STILL PLAYING, WE PLAYED INTO JUNE LAST YEAR, A LOT OF BASKETBALL, AND THEN WE HAD TO PLAY OUR GUYS, OUR MAIN GUYS. UNLIKE LAST SEASON THROUGH GAME 82 TO SECURE THE NUMBER TWO SEED, WHEREAS LAST YEAR WE WERE ABLE TO REST DOWN THE STRETCH. AND I THINK THE RUN LAST SEASON AND COMING BACK AND YOU KNOW, THE AMOUNT OF MINUTES THAT OUR STARTERS HAD TO PLAY, I THINK MENTALLY, EMOTIONALLY, PHYSICALLY, I THINK GUYS ARE GASSED, THEY'RE DEAD TIRED. THEY GAVE ME EVERYTHING I COULD EVER ASK FOR. AND THAT'S WHY AS MUCH AS IT HURTS, I WILL WALK OUT OF THIS BUILDING TONIGHT WITH MY HEAD HELD VERY HIGH. BECAUSE WE COMPETED, WE FOUGHT, WE GAVE OURSELVES A CHANCE AND WE CAME UP SHORT. AND THAT'S GOING TO HAPPEN AT TIMES. I'LL SAY, JUST JUST MENTALLY AND PHYSICALLY, YOU KNOW, CONJURING UP THE ENERGY TO, TO FIGHT LIKE YOU'RE BEING HUNTED. >> I THINK THAT'S THAT'S THE , THAT'S THE EMOTION, YOU KNOW, I THINK WHEN YOU'RE THE HUNTER, YOU HAVE SO MUCH MORE, MORE, MOTIVATION. AND YOU, YOU GRASP ON TO ANYTHING TO PROVE EVERYBODY WRONG. AND YOU HAVE A CONSTANT CHIP ON YOUR SHOULDER. I THINK, YOU KNOW, AS THE WINNER, YOU, YOU KNOW, HAVING HAD ONE, I THINK, I DON'T KNOW, I FELT LIKE WE SHOULD HAVE WON TONIGHT. THAT'S THAT'S THE TOUGH PART. YOU KNOW, THEY BEAT US, BUT WE HAVE SO MANY GREAT OPPORTUNITIES, INCLUDING MYSELF. SO, IT'S JUST TOUGH, MAN. I'M JUST EXCITED FOR NEXT YEAR. I DON'T KNOW. I DON'T WATCH THESE GUYS, SO I DON'T KNOW WHAT WHAT TO TALK ABOUT, BUT I KNOW THEY, YOU KNOW, THEY HAVE TO TALK ABOUT SOMETHING AND THEY HAVE TO TALK ABOUT US THAT ARE ON THE COURT, BUT, YEAH, YOU KNOW, I'M GLAD COACH DIDN'T DIDN'T LISTEN TO HIS ADVICE. 30-52 >> THE END OF THE SEASON FOR THE DENVER NUGGETS. SO THIS HISTORY REPEATING ITSELF, RECENT HISTORY, AT LEAST BECAUSE LAST TIME A DEFENDING CHAMP MADE THE CONFERENCE FINALS WAS 2019 AND THAT WAS GOLDEN STATE. BUT IT HASN'T HAPPENED SINCE. AND DENVER WITH A 20 POINT LEAD IN GAME SEVEN ON THEIR FLOOR, UNABLE TO COMPLETE THE JOB AS MINNESOTA BEATS THEM TONIGHT, 98 TO 80. >> IT WAS INTERESTING THAT TONIGHT THEY REFLECTED ON THE DIFFICULTIES OF BEING BACK TO BACK OR GOING BACK TO BACK, OR TRYING TO BE BACK TO BACK. BEEN BLESSED ON A TEAM THAT TO BE ON THE TEAMS THAT WENT BACK TO BACK. SO I DON'T THINK IT HINDERED US IN THE PLAYOFFS LIKE WE THAT THAT FEELING HAD FAR GONE. IT WAS THE START OF THE SEASON BECAUSE YOU'RE PLAYING AT SUCH A HIGH LEVEL IN JUNE AND THEN ALL OF A SUDDEN YOU TURN AROUND AND YOU'RE PLAYING A PRESEASON GAME IN OCTOBER. SO IT'S LIKE, IT DOESN'T MEAN ANYTHING. AND SO IT TAKES A SECOND TO POSSIBLY TURN THE SWITCH ON. BUT ONCE THE SWITCH IS ON, IT'S ON. YOU'RE NOT THINKING ABOUT TODAY. OH, WE HAD TO REFLECT AND WE WERE TIRED. NO NO NO. LIKE WE'RE BACK AND WE'RE HERE AND YOU'RE GOING TO HAVE TO BEAT US. AND THE CHIP IS BACK AND EVERYTHING IS BACK. SO I WAS REALLY SURPRISED TO HEAR BOTH MIKE MALONE AND JAMAL MURRAY KIND OF REFLECT THAT WAY THIS LATE IN THE SEASON. >> LET'S HEAR WHAT THE JOKER HAS TO SAY. HE JUST SAT DOWN . >> SHOULD WE HEAR A LOT ABOUT HOW HARD IT IS TO REPEAT IN THE NBA? I KNOW IT JUST HAPPENED FOR YOU GUYS, BUT NOW THAT YOU'VE TRIED TO DO IT, DO YOU HAVE ANY THOUGHTS ON WHAT MAKES IT SO DIFFICULT TO DO IT BACK TO BACK? >> I MEAN, I DON'T KNOW, WE DIDN'T ACCOMPLISH THAT. SO I MEAN, I DON'T KNOW. IT'S HARD BECAUSE THE TEAMS ARE MORE HUNGRIER, THE BETTER, BETTER TALENTED THAN LAST YEAR. PROBABLY EVERYBODY GET BETTER. EVERYBODY WANTS TO BEAT US. PROBABLY. THAT'S MY THOUGHT PROCESS. PROBABLY NIKOLA. OBVIOUSLY YOU GUYS WENT UP PRETTY EARLY IN THAT THIRD QUARTER AND LEAD ULTIMATELY DISSIPATED. >> JUST WHAT HAPPENED IN THE SECOND HALF FROM YOUR PERSPECTIVE? >> I MEAN, THEY WERE SCORING. THEY HAD A LOT OF OFFENSIVE REBOUNDS. WE COULDN'T MAKE SHOTS EVEN. I THINK WE HAD A LOT OF OPEN LOOKS, WIDE OPEN LOOKS, BUT THAT'S, THAT'S WHAT HAPPENS. YOU KNOW, SOMETIMES YOU MAKE SHOTS, SOMETIMES YOU MISS SHOTS. AND, TODAY I THINK WE DIDN'T MISS SHOTS, I THINK WE MISSED A LOT OF GOOD SHOTS. BUT, YOU KNOW, THAT'S, NOT JUST ON US. THEY PLAYED SOME GOOD DEFENSE. THAT'S WHY THE NUMBER ONE DEFENSE IN THE NBA, SOME OF YOUR TEAMMATES WERE JUST SAYING WHAT MAKES THIS EVEN MORE PAINFUL IS THE FACT THAT, YOU KNOW, IT WASN'T A SWEEP. >> THEY FELT YOU WERE THE BETTER TEAM. AND THERE'S SO MUCH TALENT ON THIS TEAM THAT THEY THOUGHT THIS WAS THE TEAM THAT COULD REPEAT. >> IS THAT WHAT MAKES IT WITH YOU? >> PERHAPS STING MORE BECAUSE OF THE TALENT ON THIS TEAM? >> YOU KNOW, I DON'T BELIEVE IN I BELIEVE IN THAT. I THINK THE TEAM HUMANS IS BETTER TEAM. SO YOU HAVE A SEVEN GAME SO OVER A BEST OF SEVEN. SO IF SOMEONE BEATS YOU I THINK THEY WERE THE BETTER TEAM. CONGRATS TO THEM. LIKE WE DID. WE HAVE A CHANCES. OF COURSE WE DID. BUT, IF SOMEONE BEATS YOU, I MEAN, THEY'RE BETTER. >> YOU KNOW WHAT'S INTERESTING ABOUT YOUR COMMENTS, KENNY? THE ONE THING WE SAID ABOUT THE NUGGETS ALL YEAR, MAN, THEY'RE GOING TO MISS THEM GUYS ON THE BENCH. >> AND WE'RE TALKING ABOUT JEFF GREEN JEFF GREEN KNOW BROWN WAS THE BIGGEST ONE. >> YEAH. AND THAT'S THE THAT'S THE REASON THEY LOST. AND THAT'S THE REASON THOSE GUYS HAVE TO PLAY THEIR MINUTES. >> WELL CHUCK I ALSO THINK THEY NEED TO SHOOT SOME SHOOTING. THEY NEEDED SOMEBODY TO MAKE A SHOT. >> YEAH. >> BUT BROWN MADE A LOT OF SHOTS AND JEFF GREEN MADE SOME SHOTS. YOU KNOW BECAUSE YOU KNOW HE WANTED HE WANTED TO TALK ABOUT THOSE GUYS PLAYING ALL THOSE MINUTES BECAUSE YOU LET ALL YOUR BENCH GO. AND THEN THE GUY YOU WERE GOING OUT THERE WITH, ALL THEM YOUNG GUYS THINKING THEY WERE GOING TO STEP UP. >> THEY PLAYED THREE GUYS. >> YEAH. >> BUT BUT SEE, YOU GIVE AWAY ALL YOUR PLAYERS AND THEN YOU'RE LIKE, OH. YOU KNOW I GOT TO PLAY MY STARTERS. I'M LIKE, THAT'S Y'ALL. >> THEY COULDN'T REALLY THEY COULDN'T MATCH BROWN. YEAH, I MEAN NOT BROWN. YEAH. BROWN. >> HE COULDN'T OH THEY COULDN'T MATCH. NOBODY MATCHED JEFF GREEN JEFF GREEN PLAYED VERY WELL. >> HE PLAYED WELL. BUT THEY COULD HAVE MATCHED JEFF GREEN. BUT THEY DIDN'T MATCH HIM. YEAH. BROWN WAS A SOUGHT AFTER FREE AGENT LAST YEAR. >> YEAH. AGAIN THE FINAL SCORE 9890 MINNESOTA ADVANCES TO THE WESTERN CONFERENCE FOR THE SHOW TAKES A BAD TURN. NOW WE ALL KNOW THAT XANDER SCHAUFFELE WON THE PGA CHAMPIONSHIP. SHOUT OUT WAS ANOTHER HUGE GOLF EVENT. JUST A COUPLE OF DAYS AGO. WHAT'S IT CALLED? >> CHUCK THE BLACK MASTERS AND THE
