Why The Denver Nuggets Have Completely Owned The Lakers For ...

Los Angeles, CA - April 25:Nuggets Nikola Jokic, #15, drives downcourt followed by Lakers LeBron ... [+] James, #23, during second quarter action in game 3 of the first-round playoff series at Crypto.com Arena on Thursday, April 25, 2024. (Photo by David Crane/MediaNews Group/Los Angeles Daily News via Getty Images)

MediaNews Group via Getty Images

The last time the Lakers found any success against the Nuggets, the calendar read 2022. Kevin Durant was still in Brooklyn, the Warriors were defending their championship, and James Harden’s relationship with Daryl Morey wasn’t yet fractured.

It’s been a while.

With a 3-0 lead in the first round, Denver is one road win from dispatching the Lakers for the second straight year. After not sweeping a single playoff series in their 47-year history, they have a chance to do it twice in a 12-month span ... to the same opponent.

It got so ugly offensively for the Lakers on Thursday, the Los Angeles crowd started chanting “Fi-re Dar-vin!” during the final minutes.

Head coach Darvin Ham is undoubtedly on the hot seat, but some fans might need a wake up call. It wouldn’t matter who is on the sidelines for LA — they don’t have the horses to keep up with the defending champs.

In their last 11 meetings, the Nuggets have trailed six times by double digits only to storm back and snatch the life out of LA:

Nuggets-Lakers

Last 11 Meetings

This is the only time in LeBron James’ career he’s lost to a single opponent at least 10 straight times. Denver has given him a taste of the same medicine he used to feed Toronto.

The theme in this particular series has been consistent. Denver starts slow, taking questionable shots and failing to find their rhythm ... before channeling their championship habits and storming back.

Denver’s point differential by quarter is quite amusing after three games:

First quarter: -22 overall, -31.0 per 100 poss. Second quarter: Even Third quarter: +31 overall, +47.4 per 100 poss. Fourth quarter: +11 overall, +17.5 per 100 poss.

After securing the victory, MVP favorite Nikola Jokic discussed why his team isn’t about to fall into complacency.

Despite having all the breathing room in the world right now, they never get bored racking up wins.

“Winning is a lifestyle for us,” Jokic said. “We really enjoy it – like, it’s really good when you’re winning and it’s special when you win a lot of games. Everybody is happy and everybody wants to play. Everyone is buying into the system. So, winning is a lifestyle and we don’t want to ... I mean, I was here when we were losing. And I don’t want to go back to that.”

Game 3 was all about the surgical halfcourt offense that Denver continues to display. They posted a 126 offensive rating in the second half, assisting on 71% of their made baskets.

Aaron Gordon routinely outworked the Lakers’ frontcourt, grabbing 15 rebounds and sneaking into every open crack the Lakers couldn’t seal.

Defensively, the Nuggets keep forcing LeBron and Anthony Davis to play in a tight crowd. Denver is showing they don’t have a high level of respect for LA’s shooters, electing to shrink the floor and muck up the halfcourt.

But let’s get into why the Nuggets are such a headache to defend.

Denver gets into one of their automatics, a Murray-Jokic pick & roll that flows directly into a Jokic pindown for Porter Jr. Not only does this terrify a defense when Porter Jr. is flying open toward the perimeter, but it accomplishes the main objective in basketball: Keeping multiple defenders thinking and putting them in rotation.

For some reason, LeBron anticipated Gordon being a spacer instead of lurking around the dunker spot. He was caught ball-watching and paid the price, as we don’t see the usual finger-pointing he can resort to in these moments.

Gordon is the most dangerous baseline threat in the NBA for a reason. Help defenders are constantly waiting for Jokic to roast his primary matchup in one-on-one coverage. It’s seared in their mind, which always leads to mental lapses off the ball.

Here’s another example, as LeBron allows the backdoor cut despite Anthony Davis doing his job and keeping Jokic from drop-stepping to the baseline. Instead of forcing Jokic to take a contested look (one he still might convert), they give up a Gordon dunk:

It’s evident the Lakers are haunted by Gordon and how he operates off the ball.

This possession below is the best indication LeBron has frequent nightmares about trying to contain every option on the floor. The Murray-Jokic two man game has defenders twirling in circles at every pass fake, clearly in fear of Gordon catching a lob:

But that’s what makes the Nuggets a special unit. Their offense is scheme-proof. You can’t trap Murray on the ball without conceding an open dunk on the backside. Can’t send two defenders flying at Jokic without him generating a corner three. Can’t cheat off Porter Jr. or Kentavious Caldwell-Pope on the perimeter to provide help. And as we’ve covered, losing sight of Gordon is the quickest way to a timeout.

It’s not hyperbolic to put them in the conversation with prime Golden State (2015-2018) as the toughest halfcourt covers in the modern era. And, since this is the golden era of basketball in many respects, that label should extend to the best in NBA history.

Opponents think the only way to stop the Murray-Jokic actions is to play in the gaps and send help from the nail. In theory, that’s not wrong. If you don’t bring extra bodies into the picture, one of them will just torch your base defense.

The problem, however, is that Denver wants you in rotation.

The Nuggets begin salivating when Porter Jr. has open space, because they know one pass will trigger a sequence of events most defenders can’t handle. Watch LeBron and D’Angelo Russell both stunt at Porter Jr. when he attacks the closeout, leaving Gordon wide open on the slip:

In general, the Lakers have failed with their help-side principles in this series. On the play below, LeBron rotates over for weakside coverage when Murray turns the corner (one can argue if he needed to help that aggressively).

The problem is, nobody ‘helps the helper’ by sinking down to take Gordon in the dunker spot. Then, you can see a frustrated LeBron based on his body language:

There are too many leaks in the Lakers’ defense to stay with this team.

Again, though: This is what Denver does. They repeatedly cause leaks. They make you contemplate selling your house because of the irreparable water damage.

Oh, and it doesn’t matter who is running pick & roll with Jokic. As long as he’s in the game, the attention will be on that side of the floor. Watch how every weakside defender has their head turned, prompting Christian Braun to make this “45 cut” down the lane:

What ultimately makes the Nuggets the most dominant fourth quarter unit in basketball is not their ability to create open looks.

Actually, it’s the fact they can morph into different versions of themselves depending on the situation. Whatever the setting calls for, regardless of the time and score, they have a solid answer for everything.

In the moments LA tried to lock down defensively and stay alert, Michael Porter Jr. becomes the ultimate cheat code. We don’t often think about Denver employing a shot creator with a 7-foot wingspan, but he can be their trump card when all else fails:

Porter Jr. shot 5-of-7 in the fourth quarter, nailing contested looks and completely demoralizing the Lakers on their home floor.

Denver is leading 3-0 in this series despite shooting 22-of-76 (29%) on above-the-break threes. They are just 6-of-25 (24%) from the corners.

Yet, they just carve you up from literally everywhere else and capitalize on every mistake.

The Nuggets’ roadmap to a second championship is clear. It’s banking on their collective IQ, constant movement, and ironclad chemistry.

Because of their familiarity with each other, chances are, they will make far fewer mistakes over a 48-minute game. And when their opponents inevitably wilt under pressure, Denver doesn’t just make them pay — they relegate them to basketball misery.

To the point where opposing stars begin teasing retirement, or flatly accepting their fate by uttering, “It’s just basketball at the end of the day.”