In the playoffs, games are generally decided by the margins and so far the Denver Nuggets have beat the Los Angeles Lakers at all the little things to take a commanding 3-0 series lead.
The Lakers have had to do all the adjusting to the Nuggets who have had an answer every time they seem to figure something out. Game 3 was the perfect example of that as Los Angeles held a fourth quarter lead before Denver responded midway through the period to win the pivotal game.
When asked about what’s been the difference in the series, LeBron James credited the Nuggets’ supporting cast for stepping up when needed. “I mean, obviously Jamal was fantastic in the first half today. He got them off to a great start, and even with that, we were only down three at the half.
“I think it’s been the timely shots by their role players. Obviously I think the KCPs and Michael Porter Jrs. and Bruce Browns, even Jeff hit a big-time timely shot today when we were kind of going on a run. I think it’s been the supporting cast that have kind of made those timely shots that’s allowed them to kind of have the edge.”
James also detailed the fourth quarter stretch that effectively sealed their fate. “That was the game. We had back-to-back turnovers. After Rui made two free throws, we went up one and had back-to-back turnovers and they hit back-to-back threes, and made us take a time-out and we never got back in rhythm.”
What’s made Denver such a tough matchup for L.A. is they’ve always got enough 3-point shooting to either climb back into the game or extend their lead. Nikola Jokic has done a masterful job of moving the ball and picking apart the Laker defense, giving his teammates opportunities to score and hit open shots.
On the brink of elimination, the purple and gold don’t have many answers left and simply must play more desperate than they did in Game 4. James hasn’t given up hope on coming back, but that might be too tall of a task for even him.
Anthony Davis says Lakers need to take things one game at a time
Like James, Anthony Davis isn’t quitting on the series yet despite the near-impossible task in front of them. In order to get back on track, Davis emphasized that the Lakers have to take things one game at a time and go from there.
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