Nuggets vs Lakers Game 5 Preview: Will the Los Angeles Lakers stage a remarkable comeback against the defending champions?
Denver’s first-round series, which has four games, is a lot like last year’s.
Here are three essential things that the Nuggets need to do to repeat their five-game win over the Lakers and their win over the Timberwolves last year:
Take Back the Glass
Denver regularly beat the Lakers in rebounds by seven or more in each of the first three wins.
In Game 4, however, things went the other way: Los Angeles got 46 boards to Denver’s 40. The Nuggets had nine offensive rebounds, one more than the Lakers. However, the Lakers made the most of them, turning them into 14 second-chance points while Denver only managed five.
The 23 rebounds that Anthony Davis grabbed were almost as many as Nikola Jokic (14) and Michael Porter Jr. (11) combined for Denver.
Denver’s ability to keep the Lakers to one shot per play is a big part of their success. If they can do this, they might avoid having to go back to Los Angeles.
Bench Bounces Back
For the past few games, role players have done better when they play at home. This trend has continued through all four games.
The Nuggets scored more bench points than the Lakers in Games 1 and 2. The bench, on the other hand, became more productive when the game moved to Los Angeles.
The Lakers kept up their good play with a 13-5 lead in bench points on Saturday, after having a 19-12 lead on Thursday. In Game 4, Denver’s only backup player to make a field goal was Justin Holiday.
Peyton Watson made a couple of free throws off the bench to help. Lakers forward Taurean Prince has been a star off the bench, scoring six or more points in every game, which is something that no one on Denver’s second unit has been able to do.
It would be great if Christian Braun, Watson, Reggie Jackson, or Holiday could give something on Monday.
Reduce Russell or Reaves
The Nuggets were able to keep either D’Angelo Russell or Austin Reaves to less than 15 points in each of the first three games of the series. In the game on Saturday, though, both players scored 21 points very efficiently.
On the other hand, Davis and LeBron James have scored at least 25 points each game and have scored 55 points or more in all four games. Denver should focus on stopping a third or fourth scoring threat from coming on, even though slowing down their score would be good.
During this series, Davis and James have shown how great they are, and if the Warriors can’t stop either Russell or Reaves, it puts even more pressure on the Lakers’ star pair to score.
Who Won Nuggets vs Lakers Game 4?
With a big win over the Denver Nuggets in Game 4, the Los Angeles Lakers avoided a sweep at the hands of Nikola Jokic and his team. The Lakers’ defense was great, and they got their first win against the Nuggets in over a year thanks to LeBron James and Anthony Davis showing off their skills.
Still, the Lakers will have a tough time when the game comes back to Denver. In NBA history, no team has ever come back from a 3-0 loss. However, the Lakers can take comfort in the fact that they have led at halftime in all four games.
Will LeBron and AD muster yet another heroic effort to shift the series back to Los Angeles?
Nuggets vs Lakers Game 5 Preview: Best Bet and Prediction
On Monday night, the Nuggets are unmistakably favored with odds at -295. Meanwhile, the Lakers find themselves as understandable 7.5-point underdogs against one of the league’s top home teams.
With a 33-8 record at home this season, Denver has the best home record in the Western Conference. There is a big difference in altitude between the Nuggets and their opponents, and they only had one day off between Game 4 and Game 5. The Lakers also have to deal with the fact that they are an older team, which makes this a big problem for them.
The Lakers have shown bursts of energy and passion at the start of games in this series, but they have trouble keeping it up for the full 48 minutes because they depend too much on James and Davis on both ends of the court. Still, the question is whether they can find the same energy in Denver after such a short trip. The chances don’t look good.
When it comes to plan and mindset, the Nuggets are far ahead of the Lakers. Los Angeles’ guards have trouble guarding the perimeter, and they don’t have anyone else who can stop Jokic besides Davis.
Given the offensive burden Anthony Davis must shoulder, expecting him to sustain it for the entire 48 minutes is excessive.
Furthermore, Jamal Murray has yet to find his rhythm in this series, and it’s reasonable to anticipate improved shooting from the Nuggets moving forward. While the Lakers secured a Game 4 victory, it’s challenging to envision them replicating another win, particularly on the road in Denver.
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