Denver Nuggets coach Michael Malone felt a bad kind of déjà vu as he watched his team fade during the second half of Monday night's 122-105 loss to the Suns in Phoenix in Game 1 of their Western Conference semifinal series.
After seeing his team get blown out by the Portland Trail Blazers in Game 1 of their first-round playoff series, Malone lamented what he felt was his team's "soft mentality" while watching the Nuggets -- who led 58-57 at halftime -- get outscored 65-47 in the final 24 minutes.