With two gentleman’s sweeps so far this postseason, the Los Angeles Lakers will next face the Cinderella Denver Nuggets in the Western Conference Finals. The series looks to be more entertaining than some may expect, as both teams feature players covering all skills of the game. Jamal Murray is scoring and shooting at a high level. LeBron James and Nikola Jokic are two of the best passers from a non-point guard perspective (if going by positions). Anthony Davis has dominated on both ends of the floor. The list goes on and on. Both teams are well-coached and feature deep rosters, too. While most anticipated an all-L.A. Conference Finals, this series looks to be just as high quality.
Lakers’ Run to WCF: 8-2
Two incredible Game 1’s from the Portland Trail Blazers and Houston Rockets prevented the Lakers from an undefeated playoff run. In those games, two huge fourth-quarter runs led by Damian Lillard and Russell Westbrook saw the West’s top seed down 0-1 in both series. The Lakers, however, found a way in both series to win four straight and advance. L.A. has improved its defensive effort and moved the ball well (top 3 in both offensive and defensive efficiency so far in the postseason).
Nuggets’ Run to WCF: 8-6
I don’t read anything into Denver’s record or how many games it took to reach this point. The Nuggets have played well and taken the next step in their playoff evolution after reaching the conference semifinals last season. Murray has played well and posted some great performances in battles with Donovan Mitchell and the Clippers’ wings.
Jokic continues to amaze with his all-around play, while Michael Porter Jr. seemingly found his voice in the locker room by calling for more involvement across the roster. That was before a second-straight comeback from a 3-1 deficit this postseason.
Any Wisdom from Regular Season?
Here is a part of an earlier piece I did analyzing the Lakers’ bubble schedule. It features a brief take on the match-up between these two teams:
The Nuggets are currently 3rd in the West standings and would need two games to catch the Clippers for the 2nd seed. That is within their reach in the Orlando bubble and places extra significance on the Lakers-Nuggets match-up. The road team won each of the previous encounters, which is interesting as each team prepares for the bubble climate without fans. In the Laker wins, the team is +34 on the boards. In the Nuggets’ win on December 22nd, the teams broke even in rebounding.
So, needless to say, rebounding is something I will key-in on during this series. In wins against the Nuggets, the Lakers dominated the glass. This will be interesting as the Lakers downsized their starting lineup in the previous series against the Rockets. While still a big lineup with Markieff Morris, the Lakers will face much more length this series against Denver.
Some Interesting “Nuggets”
Mike Malone and the Nuggets have made it clear they like their chances against the Lakers. Malone certainly believes in the competitiveness and resiliency of his team. While he may not believe LeBron James stacks up favorably to Michael Jordan, he respects the career that James has had so far.
But that respect only goes so far. Malone’s team is adamant that they look forward to playing against the Los Angeles Lakers.
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