Michael Malone cracks funny '3-1' joke ahead of Lakers series

The Denver Nuggets are unstoppable these playoffs when down 3-1, and head coach Michael Malone almost wants to keep playing from behind.

Malone joked Thursday that the Nuggets were hoping to start the Western Conference Finals against the Los Angeles Lakers already in a 3-1 deficit.

“We petitioned the league to start down 3-1,” said Malone, per ESPN’s Malika Andrews. “Save everybody a lot of time and get caught up to the Eastern Conference [series]. They shut that down.”

Down 3-1 in the first round against the Utah Jazz, the Nuggets rattled off three consecutive wins to advance. Lightning then struck twice when they climbed out of a 3-1 hole to upset the heavily favored L.A. Clippers in the second round. Denver is now the first team in NBA history to come back from a 3-1 deficit multiple times in the same postseason.

The team is obviously playing with a ton of resiliency right now and having a lot of fun out there. While the Lakers are overwhelming favorites once again in the series, we have learned by now to never count out this Nuggets squad.