Denver Nuggets Play Perfect Match, Los Angeles Lakers Lose 3-0 in Western Finals
With a 118-109 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers at Game 3 right in LA, the Denver Nuggets came very close to the grand final series - NBA Finals 2023.
Nikola Jokic and his teammates took a 3-0 lead in the Western final series and up to this point, no team in history has been able to come back from this "deep hole".
Game 3 started with very hot hands of Jamal Murray, lasting from the second half of the previous match. Defender Denver Nuggets scored 30 points in the first half of today's game and seemed to have "knock-out" the Los Angeles Lakers.
But with reasonable play, coach Darvin Ham decided to use 2 points against 3 points, focusing on attacking the near-basket area with Anthony Davis' muscles. Through two innings, the Lakers survived Murray's hot hands and were only 2 points ahead.
A positive sign came in the third half for the Lakers as Murray cooled down and Nikola Jokic committed a fourth personal foul. However, Denver showed the depth of the squad with the brilliance of the trio of Bruce Brown, Michael Porter Jr and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope.
Only 12 points from Caldwell-Pope (an old Lakers man) at the end of the third half helped the Nuggets in a tug-of-war before entering the fourth. And at this crucial moment, Denver once again showed that they are a worthy team. with victory.
Responding to the sublimation of the Lakers, Nikola Jokic and his teammates opened a series of 13-0 points in the middle of the fourth half. From 94-93 in favor of the Lakers, the Nuggets went ahead with the score 106-94.
This run is no different from a knock-out phase with LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers team.
Although they tried very hard to find opportunities to shorten the score, the LA throwers in turn missed the opportunity. The Denver Nuggets continued to play hard until the end of the game, winning Game 3 with an overall score of 118-109.
This result put the No. 1 seed in the West to a 3-0 lead in the Western Finals series, just 1 victory away from the NBA Finals series.
History is completely on the side of the Denver Nuggets when no team has come back from 0-3, adding confidence to coach Michael Malone's teachers and students.
Jamal Murray scored the most points this game with 37 points (15-29 FG, 5-11 3PT) along with 7 rebounds, 6 assists and 2 steals. Nikola Jokic has 24 points and 8 assists.
Michael Porter Jr had a double-double with 14 points, 10 rebounds and 6 assists. Former Lakers man Kentavious Caldwell-Pope has 17 points (6-10 FG). The whole Denver Nuggets team threw in 17 3-pointers with a 41.5% success rate, an overwhelming score compared to the 10 3PTMs and 31.3% of the Los Angeles Lakers.
They played a near-perfect match, comprehensively defended and displayed squad depth, surviving an inning where the two stars left no mark.
On the home side of Game 3, Anthony Davis, LeBron James and Austin Reaves both scored over 23 points. Davis led with 28 points and 18 rebounds. LeBron has 23 points and 12 assists. Reaves scored 23 points, 7 rebounds and 5 assists.
One name to blame today is D'Angelo Russell. Despite playing in the starting lineup, this PG only had 1-8 FG 1-6 3PT and 4 assists. In the reserve players, Rui Hachimura (13 points, 6 rebounds) and Lonnie Walker IV (9 points, 2-3 3PT) stood out.
The Los Angeles Lakers' hopes of a competitive championship season have dwindled significantly after this Game 3. As mentioned above, no team has ever successfully come back from a 3-match gap.
Although the Lakers have not officially been eliminated and they still have at least 1 game left. But to work miracles, LeBron James and his teammates need to win all 4 remaining matches in the series.
Game 4 between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Denver Nuggets will take place at 7:30 a.m. Tuesday, May 23.
