Los Angeles Lakers - Denver Nuggets
USA - NBA, Playoffs, Western conference finals
The Los Angeles Lakers are on the verge of elimination from the NBA playoffs. They lost on their floor by 119:108 and are now trailing 3:0. It has never happened in history that someone made a comeback from this deficit. This means that LeBron James has a chance to push the boundaries once more in his career, but it will take something miraculous. For the beginning, the Los Angeles Lakers need to start playing better defense. They are allowing 119.6 points in the Western Conference Finals and that is unacceptable. Especially bad is D'Angelo Russell, who is constantly attacked by the Denver Nuggets when he is on the court. There are also problems on the other side of the floor. James is not playing the way a team's leader should be playing, and Anthony Davis was non-existent in game number two. When it comes to the rest of the roster, the only constant is Austin Reaves.
Many thought that the Denver Nuggets would not handle the pressure well in these playoffs, but that is absolutely not the case. They play the best basketball in the entire league and are the first favorites to win the NBA title. This franchise has never reached the NBA Finals in its history and now they are just one win away from that. Joel Embiid may have won the MVP award, but Nikola Jokic is playing at a different level. Much higher level. Head coach Michael Malone pointed out after game number three that the Serbian center was the one who called the actions at the end of the game. Jamal Murray scored 30 points in the first half on Saturday night, and the Denver Nuggets are also getting contributions from the bench. Quite simply, they were superior to the Los Angeles Lakers so far in this series.
It was no accident that the Los Angeles Lakers reached the Western Conference Finals. They eliminated #2 seed Memphis Grizzlies and then the reigning NBA champions Golden State Warriors. They definitely have quality, but they are outplayed by the Denver Nuggets so far. If they are swept, it will be a humiliation for James and Davis. It's time to react. The Los Angeles Lakers probably won't make a historic comeback in this series, but they can win one game to start with. They play on their floor and the pride should do its job. This series might not last much longer, but there's definitely a good chance to be back in Colorado for at least one more showdown.