Malone rips media's Lakers narratives: 'You put that in your pipe, you smoke it'

After the Denver Nuggets defended home court and took a 2-0 series lead over the Los Angeles Lakers on Thursday night, head coach Michael Malone spoke out against the narratives going against his team.

"You win Game 1 of the playoffs, and all everybody talked about was the Lakers," Malone said after Denver's 108-103 Game 2 win. "Let's be honest, that was a national narrative was that 'the Lakers were fine. They were down 1-0, but they figured something out.'

"No one talked about Nikola (Jokic) just had a historic performance. ... The narrative wasn't about the Nuggets; the narrative wasn't about Nikola. The narrative was about the Lakers and their adjustments. So, you put that in your pipe, you smoke it."

When asked if the narrative has changed, Malone said he didn't care.

"We know our narrative in that locker room. We know that we're not done; we haven't done anything yet. You got to win a game on the other team's home court if you really want to do something in a series, and we know how great that team is, especially on their home court."

When asked about the perceived lack of respect for the Nuggets, Jokic said, "I like it," according to The Denver Post's Mike Singer.

After being down by three points heading into the fourth quarter, Nuggets point guard Jamal Murray exploded for 23 points in the final frame. The 26-year-old finished with 37 points, 10 rebounds, five assists, and four steals.

The Canadian now has four 20-point fourth quarters in his playoff career, the most by a player over the last 25 years, according to ESPN Stats & Info.

"Even when we win, they talk about the other team," Murray said, according to Singer.

The Nuggets can go up 3-0 in Los Angeles on Saturday, with tipoff slated for 8:30 p.m. ET.