After Nikola Jokic’s Monster Triple Double in game 1, it was Jamal Murray in game 2 in the fourth quarter that demolished the Los Angeles Lakers enroute to a 2-0 lead in the NBA Western Conference Finals
Jamal Murray is the story. He was 5 of 17 from the field in the first three quarters but couldn’t miss in the fourth quarter. In the last 25 years there have been Allen Iverson and Michael Jordan where they had twenty plus points, twice each. Jamal Murray has done that four times already in his career and he is just 26 years old. He is Canada’s finest. He checks scores. Once he gets the bucket, he is going to put up again and shoot it from further and he is clutch too. Jamal Murray was terrific.
And for the lakers, they fell in love with the three-point shot. AD Hit one from the right corner, Lebron James took a couple of threes. He only made one fourth quarter three in the playoffs. Lakers should have driven the ball. Jamal Murray and Denver Nuggets Deserve a ton of credit, coming from behind on their home floor with a 2-0 lead in this series. A lot of people referred to the bubble when Jamal Murray was pitting up big numbers and he is clearly out to prove everybody that was no fluke, and he was doing work particularly in the fourth quarter. He led them offensively and that ultimately is why they won.
Subtle Joker Brilliance Complementing Murray
When you look at the game, it’s not that spectacular game for Nikola Jokic, it was Jamal Murrays game, but when you look at the box score you see 23-17-12, his seventh triple double in the postseason, only Wilt has done that. This is why the Joker is the wild card in the deck. The Joker plays within himself, he will score on the post, he will take advantage of the matchup and he rebounds offensively which resulted in some Bruce Brown points and when he is double teamed, he gives amazing assists.
That’s the beauty about being a super star level player with versatility. Usually, the biggest guy is not the best passer, the best rebounder doesn’t lead the team in assists plus have the ability to knock down threes and play percentage basketball. The Joker was terrific today and the Nuggets showed a lot of character in winning this game.
Anthony Davis Miseries with LeBron
Anthony Davis had 18 points and 14 rebounds but was 4 of 15 in shooting. Davis has been up and down, but his defensive presence and rebounding has been consistent. He had 40 points the previous game but struggled from the floor virtually this entire game. The Denver Bigs and Wings particularly Aaron Gordon did a good job of contesting and forcing AD away from his sweet spots. AD and Lebron was getting looks that they normally make.
Lebron missed a layup multiple times, he had a fast break and lost the ball. For the Nuggets they played nicely by not fouling at the point. AD and Lebron really struggled on the floor. It’s going to be extremely difficult for the Lakers to win games 4 and 5.
Rui Hachimura the X Factor
The Nuggets took a 2-0 lead, and the Lakers big stars had a difficult night in game 2. They now come to home to Los Angeles in desperate need of winning game 3. Lebron James should stop shooting the ball from the three-point range and even worse in the fourth quarter. He came into this game 2 shooting 25 percentage from 3-point range, he shot 0 for 6 today. He was 1 for 17 on threes throughout the playoffs. AD should get more active, and Rui Hachimura should be more utilized. Hachimura is effective against the Denver Nuggets.