No. 1 Denver Nuggets Vs No. 7 Los Angeles Lakers
The Western Conference Finals will feature the Denver Nuggets taking on the Los Angeles Lakers for a chance to advance to the NBA Finals.
The Nuggets are coming into this series playing at an elite level after taking care of the Suns. Nikola Jokic has shown that he is still playing at a MVP level and he’s elevated his game this whole playoffs. Joker has been one of the best players in the playoffs if not the best. Now he will need to continue that against the Lakers who have length and have bolstered the bench during the season since they last played each other.
Jamal Murray has been a great robin to Joker and he’s been locked in. The last time these two teams played was in the bubble during Covid. Now Jamal Murray will have a chance to showcase that same bubble ball against the Lakers but now in 2023. The Nuggets have a lot of depth with their bench and they have players that have the experience to take down the Lakers. It’s going to take for the other guys like Bruce Brown, KCP, and Jeff Green to hold it down when Murray/Jokic need a break. This Nuggets team came into this playoffs disrespected and they feel like this will be the perfect time to put the league on notice.
The Lakers are deep and it’s crazy because LeBron James looks like he hasn’t lost a step at all in year 20. LeBron was able to coast at the end of the season because his teammates stepped their game up and now he’s well rested and coming off beating the Warriors. LeBron has been a complete player in these playoffs and this could be the series where he needs to put on an offense display. It helps LeBron because he has Anthony Davis by his side and it will be a great matchup with The Brow and Joker. Anthony Davis will be the key to this series for the Lakers and if he can average a double double this would be a great way to lead the Lakers to Banner 18. The Lakers have Schroder, Russell, and Reaves who need to step up for sure in this series.
This series will be about the other players and whose defense will show up in this game. It’s going to be tough to go against LeBron especially with the chip on his shoulder but this will be the Nuggets chance to show the league that they’re for real.
Series Prediction: Denver Win in 6 games (4-2)
Recent Comments