The brewing rivalry between Nikola Jokic’s Nuggets and Anthony Edwards’ Timberwolves is turning into psychological warfare. Game 1 ended with Denver’s 1-0 lead but how Jamal Murray aided that is still very contentious. Right before Game 2, the guard’s 16 free throws the previous game is still stinging Chris Finch as if he played a game against another team that grinds his nerves; the Oklahoma City Thunder.

David Adelman showed some semblance of sympathy for that but his rebuttal to the Timberwolves head coach was sharper than that. Chris Finch had characterized Murray’s 16 free throws as a “head-scratcher.” David Adelman dismissed the critique as post-game lamentations, defending his star guard’s aggressive approach in Denver’s 116–105 series-opening victory. “Everyone politics after games,” Adelman told reporters during Monday’s pre-game presser.

“But let’s at least list out the 16 free throws and what actually happened. This wasn’t a game where he was walking to the line. He was playing through a lot of physicality.

It’s what they do. They toe the line.” Adelman’s comments were a direct response to Finch’s frustration over a discrepancy that saw Murray shoot nearly as many free throws (16-of-16) as the entire Timberwolves roster (14-of-19). The Nuggets HC, however, suggested the solution was internal for Minnesota.

“There are nights, believe me, where we play Shai (Gilgeous-Alexander) or somebody who shoots a lot of free throws and I don’t go back to clips saying I can’t believe he got all these calls. I go, ‘Why are we fouling so much?’” The comparison falls flat when you know Adelman has referred to Shai Gilgeous-Alexander as a “foul artist” during the 2025 playoffs. SGA is also a sore topic for Finch.

So bringing him up might be a low blow. So he’s still angry about his personal tactical nightmare being used against him. More politics spilled from Jamal Murray’s free throws Adelman was right about one thing though.

There’s been a lot of post-game chattering since Game 1. The tension stems from a physical second quarter in Game 1 where Jamal Murray, despite an 0-for-8 night from beyond the arc, lived at the charity stripe to keep the Nuggets’ offense afloat. Finch remained steadfast that his defenders, particularly Jaden McDaniels and Anthony Edwards, were being unfairly penalized for “vertical” contests.

“Well, the 16 free throws from Murray was a head scratcher,” Finch said Saturday night. “I thought we played really good defense… He initiated the contact, he spills away, and then he gets rewarded for it. [Nikola] Jokic does the same thing. We’ve got to be solid around that.” Murray, who finished with 30 points and set a Nuggets playoff record by going a perfect 16-of-16 from the line, was far less diplomatic in his own assessment.

“I thought I got fouled on every single one of them. So I don’t know what everybody’s talking about,” Murray said. “It’s real fouls.

We were just being aggressive.” And they are still not done talking about it. Before Game 2, Finch once again brought up the Nuggets’ free throws. But this time he’s taking a jab at the league-wide phenomenon that Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is being blamed for.

“Maybe we gotta start flopping, too,” Finch said. He’s comparing the Nuggets to his own players claiming, “Julius is not a flopper. Ant is not a flopper.

They are physical drivers. They play through the first line of contact. A lot of times that point of contact, if you were to spill away, you get a foul.

But if you keep going, [referees] take a play-on mentality.” Most analysts, including Charles Barkley blamed the Wolves’ defensive failures for Murray’s free throws. As the series moves forward, the spotlight shifts to the officiating crew for Game 2. With Adelman accusing Finch of “politicking” and Finch accusing the Nuggets of flopping, the physicality of this game is expected to intensify.