INDIANAPOLIS — The Nuggets were shooting bricks until Kentavious Caldwell-Pope tried using a rock.
With 8:07 remaining in the third quarter Tuesday night, Indiana coach Rick Carlisle was ejected for arguing a no-call after Caldwell-Pope stood up to new Pacer Pascal Siakam like a brick wall. Momentum was shifting inside Gainbridge Fieldhouse. The Nuggets needed to sustain it with the proper free-throw shooter stepping to the line for Carlisle’s double technical. A dispute ensued between the team’s two best free throw shooters. One was hot, one was not. Cue rock-paper-scissors.
“He’s a little older than me, so I understand where he was coming from,” Jamal Murray said, mocking Caldwell-Pope for wanting the shots.