5 reasons Nuggets should be panicking after nightmare game 2 loss to Timberwolves

Monday night’s game two of the Western Conference Semifinals felt like a borderline must-win affair for the Nuggets and instead, the team shockingly laid an egg. It was as bad as the team has looked in a big game in a long time and they looked completely lost all night.

The Timberwolves came out and punched Denver in the mouth and the Nuggets looked like they didn’t know what hit them. They were blitzed on defense from the jump, and despite missing Defensive Player of the Year Award favorite Rudy Gobert, they were completely suffocated all night by the Wolves.

The Nuggets will have three full days off before taking the court for game three in Minnesota; plenty of time to rest and process what just happened to them. This team is still the defending champions and they still have the best player on the planet. The Wolves are also a young team and this is uncharted territory for them.

We’ve seen crazy things happen in the NBA playoffs before, and this series is still far from over. There are certainly reasons for optimism, but at the same time, it’s important to be realistic. The odds are now extremely in favor of the Timberwolves. This would be a historically improbably comeback of sorts for the Nuggets.

Never say never, but it’s going to take a lot for the Nuggets to pull this one off. While there is still hope, there are plenty of reasons for concern. Here are 5 reasons why Nuggets fans should be hitting the panic button after their 106-80 game two loss.