Kendrick Perkins Uses One Harsh Word to Describe Michael Malone, Nuggets

The defending champion Denver Nuggets didn't look like the defending champs vs. the Timberwolves on Monday night. Nikola Jokic and Co. simply couldn't get much going against Minnesota's suffocating defense.

It's the first time in a long time the Nuggets have been so off their game. But the worst part about their performance Monday night is the multiple times they lost their composure, which is uncommon for a team a year removed from an NBA title run.

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Even Michael Malone blew a gasket while arguing a call in the first half. He got in the face of NBA ref Marc Davis, on the court, and somehow didn't get a technical foul for it.

The Nuggets have been the NBA's baby for a year now. But now that they're not the team getting all the calls, they're incapable of remaining composed.

ESPN's Kendrick Perkins goes as far as to call Malone and the Nuggets "babies" for their behavior.

"Tell the defending champs to leave some room for the babies… all that damn crying to the refs. Check Ball," Perkins said on X .

Will the Timberwolves vs. Nuggets series even get back to Denver? Minnesota might close this out on its home court.