Michael Malone opened the Nuggets’ Monday film session following Denver’s last-second Game 2 defeat by addressing the elephant in the room.
Before jumping into the positives that the Nuggets could take away from the narrow two-point loss, Denver broke down Anthony Davis’ buzzer-beating three. It was a heck of a shot by a heck of a player, but miscommunication and defensive breakdown contributed to Davis getting a cleaner look than he should have from right in front of the Nuggets’ bench.
“Let’s talk about this play, what happened, and when we’re in this situation again, let’s learn from it,” Malone said. “Yes, we all take ownership. Let’s learn from it.”
Then, the Nuggets turned their attention to what they did well before Davis’ game-winner. From the Nuggets’ second-half defense, to how they shut down LeBron James and crowded the floor around over the third and fourth quarters, Denver emerged from that film session with confidence.
Like Game 3 just over two weeks ago against the Clippers, the Nuggets thought they gave Game 2 away.
“It seems like every series is kind of the same for us,” Nikola Jokic said, following the Nuggets’ 114-106 Game 3 win. “The game before, we lose it, but we kind of saw we can play with them.”
Maybe it’s the monotony of the NBA bubble, but Nuggets-Lakers seems to be following a similar script to the Nuggets’ second-round series win over the Clippers. Denver got blown out in Game 1 of each series but found its footing in Game 2. Against the Clippers, that translated to a win, and Denver knows it should have walked out of Sunday’s Game 2 versus the Lakers with a victory as well.
The Nuggets found something in the second half of Game 2 when Denver held the Lakers to 45 points on 39% shooting, that carried over to Game 3. They knew they could play with the Lakers coming into this series, and their confidence was palpable Tuesday night.
The Nuggets punched first, getting out to a two-point lead after the first quarter and kept their pedal to the floor. Denver carried an 18-point lead into the fourth. Then, the Lakers went to a zone, and the Nuggets froze up, nearly giving up their entire advantage. The Lakers closed to within three points with six minutes left in the fourth, but Denver battled back behind its two closers.
Now, it’s 2-1. We officially have ourselves a series.
“We had Game 2. I thought we played great in Game 2, and we just had a couple of breakdowns that really hurt us,” said Jamal Murray. “And we feel like we should be up 2-1 right now, to be honest.”
The Nuggets eventually got to a place against the Jazz in the first round, and then against the Clippers, where they knew what shots they could get and when they could get them. They settled in, growing comfortable on both ends of the court. That’s how Game 3 felt.
Murray’s Game 3 performance — 28 points, including two absolute dagger threes in the final three minutes to put Denver’s win on ice, eight rebounds, and 12 assists — was symbolic of where Denver’s level of comfort is in the series. By now, Murray has seen every coverage that defenses can throw his way and was ready for what the Lakers had coming.
“He’s starting to get the respect from the other teams, and they’re game-planning, they’re blitzing him, they’re double-teaming him, they’re giving him so many different looks,” Malone said. “And that’s what part of being an All-NBA-type of player is about. And when you do that, you have to be a willing passer.”
Murray unleashed a series of slick assists throughout Game 3 that had to impress even the league’s top dime droppers. It’s not talked about nearly as much as his scoring, but Murray has leveled up as a passer.
Murray thought his night left a lot to be desired, though, citing his four turnovers and how he felt that he didn’t keep his team organized enough.
“I’ve just got to play better,” Murray said.
His clutch stats continue to look phony — Murray’s shooting 15-25 (60%) from the field and 8-11 (73%) from three in the last five minutes of games when the score is within five points. In the fourth quarter during these playoffs, Murray is shooting 23-27 (62%) from three.
Jokic’s level of comfort in this series never had to be questioned. In Game 1, he tallied 21 points on 8-14 shooting in only 25 minutes. Jokic imposed his will in Game 2 by posting 30 points, six rebounds, and nine assists and dominated Game 3 despite shooting only 14 times.
After the level of physicality and energy that Dwight Howard played with in the first two games of the series became a Laker talking point, he was a non-factor in Game 4, logging just 14 minutes. Someone should slip a note to Howard that trash talk has literally zero effect on Jokic. Just ask Joel Embiid.
“I’m just trying to play the game how it’s supposed to be played,” Jokic said after Game 3 when prodded about the Howard matchup.
This series hasn’t wholly flipped, and adjustments from the Lakers are indeed coming. But the parallels between how the Nuggets eventually found their footing towards the middle part of the Jazz and Clippers series and how a similar pattern has played out over the last two games gets you thinking.
This Nuggets roster isn’t new to the playoffs anymore. This same core went through a 14 game postseason grind last year and already has the experience of 17 playoff games during this current run to build on. Denver knows how to adapt as a series moves along and how to slow even the NBA’s best players and most potent scorers, from Donovan Mitchell to Kawhi Leonard and now James.
While lauding the defensive performance of Grant in Game 3, Malone also mentioned that this playoff run has been the best stretch of defense that he’s felt Murray has played throughout his entire career. Another defensive stat from Game 3, which should be noted, is Denver’s rebounding. The Nuggets outrebounded the Lakers 44-25 Tuesday and kept Los Angeles to only four offensive rebounds after it corralled 13 in Game 2. Anthony Davis, JaVale McGee, and Howard combined for just four rebounds in Game 3.
By now, the Nuggets are also well aware of how skilled and deep their roster is, especially when Grant, Monte Morris, and Michael Porter Jr. combine to shoot 16-24 from the floor as they did in Game 3.
“We don’t want to lose when we know that we have the talent to win,” Murray said.
The Lakers would have loved to make the Western Conference Finals a short series and rest up before taking on the Heat or Bucks. But the Nuggets have no plans of leaving the Disney World campus anytime soon.
“Everybody always has us packing our bags and leaving, but we’re not ready to go,” Malone said. “For some reason, we love this bubble.”
