After a Game 1 rich in lessons, it’s time for a potentially pivotal Game 2, between nuggets who were planning to turn at 2-0 to make the break and Lakers who had rather in mind to equalize at 1-1 and recover the advantage of the field with a victory.
The physiognomy of this second meeting had in any case nothing to do with that of the first, since Los Angeles raced in the lead for a good part of the match, counting up to ten points ahead, but without managing to break away seriously. What to allow denver to stay in contact at all times, then to finally make the difference thanks to a terrible boost in the fourth quarter, from which the “Purple & Gold” will not recover.
On arrival, this therefore makes a new success (108-103) for the Nuggets of Jamal Murray (37 points, 10 rebounds, 5 assists, 4 steals) and Nikola Jokic (23 points, 17 rebounds, 12 assists, 3 steals), synonymous with break, because they go 2-0 in this conference final and are only two wins away from the Finals!
As saying that LeBron James (22 points, 10 assists, 9 rebounds, 4 steals), Anthony Davis (18 points, 14 rebounds, 4 blocks) and others will have absolutely no room for error in the next two games, at home, under penalty of severely compromising their chances of qualification…
WHAT YOU MUST REMEMBER
— Denver held, then defeated. Not as flamboyant offensively as in Game 1, the Nuggets went to win an “ugly game”, the kind of “ugly game” that a title contender must win, even on a night without. Proof of this team’s progress and symbol of its maturity, this victory was achieved through experience by Michael Malone’s men, as they waited until the fourth quarter to put the Lakers out of harm’s way, after having counted up to 11 points behind. A victory to the credit of Jamal Murray, author of… 23 of his 32 points in the last twelve minutes!
— Los Angeles can harbor regrets. In control of the game for two good quarters and a half, therefore, the Lakers finally cracked at the worst time, in front of the heat stroke of Jamal Murray and while Nikola Jokic was resting … Not helped by their clumsiness at 3-pointers and their inability to defend properly on transition, Darvin Ham’s men also paid for the poor performance of their duo LeBron James / Anthony Davis, as well as this helplessness in defense against an incandescent Jamal Murray. Too many small errors which, put together, weigh them down against these Nuggets.
— Nikola Jokic, the “triple-double machine”. We can’t stop it! Author of his fourth consecutive triple-double, a record for a player in a playoff campaign (tied with Wilt Chamberlain in 1967), the pivot of the Nuggets also signed his seventh triple-double of the 2023 playoffs, which again constitutes a record in a playoff campaign (tied with… Wilt Chamberlain in 1967). Overall, that makes him 12 career triple-doubles in the playoffs, one more than Russell Westbrook and only Magic Johnson (30) and LeBron James (28) do better than him at this stage of the competition. Just crazy!
TOPS/FLOPS
✅ Jamal Murray. If Nikola Jokic once again finished with a (big) triple-double on the clock, it was Murray who tipped this Game 2 in favor of the Nuggets, because he planted the trifle of 23 points in the fourth quarter- time, out of the 32 registered by his team over the period! In a state of grace (6/7 to shoot, including 4/5 to 3-pointers), the Canadian blew up the Californian lock with his multiple cannon shots behind the arc and no Lakers defender was able to slow it down. As a good “killer”, he then took charge of killing Los Angeles with throws, just to confirm his status as a player cut out for the playoffs.
✅ Rui Hachimura & Austin Reaves. He was not included in the starting five as expected by many, because Jarred Vanderbilt was preferred to him, but Hachimura nevertheless managed to sign a good performance off the bench, with 21 points (at 8/10 to shoot ) and an interesting new defensive contribution. As for Reaves, author of 22 points and 5 assists, he continues his momentum of the last games offensively, being one of the only Los Angeles players to bring danger to 3-pointers (5/9). If only LeBron James and Anthony Davis had been a bit more efficient on offense, to reward their good work…
⛔ LeBron James & Anthony Davis. Once is not custom, so it was “Bron” AND “AD” who weighed down the Lakers with their offensive contribution, or rather their clumsiness: 0/6 to 3-pointers (as well as dubious choices) for the one and 4/15 to shoot for the other. Despite great defensive streaks, the two Californian leaders did not contribute as they should and as they had to on offense to allow Los Angeles to outrun the Nuggets and, when we see the face of this match, we say to ourselves that the “Purple & Gold” missed a golden opportunity to take over the series.
⛔ Kentavious Caldwell-Pope. If it were necessary to retain a player inside on the Nuggets side, it would undoubtedly be “KCP” who, at the end of a match with 21 points (and 9/17 in shooting), finished with only 8 points on the counter (and 3/ 8 to shoot), in addition to having been embarrassed by his mistakes at the start of the game. Which didn’t help him find his rhythm and which also allowed D’Angelo Russell to regain some confidence in his game, even if the Lakers point guard, who was aggressive at first, then disappeared from the radar. .
THE FOLLOWING
Game 3but this time in Los Angeles, on the night of Saturday to Sunday (02:30).
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How to read the stats? Min = Minutes; Shots = Shots made / Shots attempted; 3pts = 3-points / 3-points attempted; LF = free throws made / free throws attempted; O = offensive rebound; D= defensive rebound; T = Total Bounces; Pd = assists; Fte: Personal fouls; Int = Intercepts; Bp = Lost bullets; Ct: Counters; +/- = Point differential when the player is on the field; Points = Points; Eval: player evaluation calculated from positive actions – negative actions.
