Early Takeaways from Lakers' 2024 NBA Playoff Performance
For the second year in a row, the Los Angeles Lakers are challenging the Denver Nuggets.
And for the second year in a row, that hasn't been enough to get the Lakers a win.
Everything was clicking for the Purple and Gold early during Tuesday's Game 2 tilt with the defending NBA champions. The shots were falling, the defense was swarming and the lead was growing, swelling to 20 points in the second half.
Eventually, though, the offense dried up and the defense struggled to find answers for two-time MVP Nikola Jokić and his best-when-under-the-bright-lights sidekick Jamal Murray, who scored 14 of his 20 points in the final quarter and buried a buzzer-beating step-back over the outstretched arms of Anthony Davis.
"A 20-point lead in this league, it's not safe, especially against the defending champion," LeBron James told reporters. "We've got to do better. But we had our chances."
Let's dig into what we've learned from L.A.'s first two playoff tilts.
The Streak Goes On
1 of 3
Denver is, admittedly, a brutal matchup for anyone.
Still, it might be the worst matchup for L.A. The Lakers' latest loss was their 10th in a row, dating back to last year's sweep in the Western Conference finals. They keep playing the Nuggets close, but just when it looks like things might go L.A.'s way, Denver turns into Lucy and yanks that football away from Charlie Brown.
"We've shown that we're more than capable," Anthony Davis told reporters. "We have stretches where we just don't know what we're doing on both ends of the floor. And those are the ones that cost us."
The Nuggets clearly have the Lakers' number, due in no small part to the fact they're simply a better team. It will take near flawless execution for L.A. to find its way back into this series.
L.A. Is Losing the Numbers Game
2 of 3
When Jokić and Murray have their two-man rhythm in perfect harmony, those actions feel unstoppable. Of course, you could say the same thing about James and Davis.
What's helping push Denver over the edge is its superior depth. The Nuggets can turn to others and get a 20-point outburst from Michael Porter Jr., an overstuffed stat sheet from Aaron Gordon or some quick-strike scoring from Christian Braun.
L.A.'s supporting cast hasn't been able to catch up.
D'Angelo Russell was awesome in Game 2's first half (18 points, 6-of-7 from three), but he's been pretty abysmal in the other six quarters (18 points, 2-of-13 from range). Austin Reaves has 22 points on 20 shots. Rui Hachimura has 10 points in two games. The next Lakers' reserve not named Taurean Prince to score in this series will be the first.
Game 3 Is a Must-Win
3 of 3
If you didn't know the history of this series, you might not consider the Lakers to be in dire straights. They played two road games against the defending champs, built double-digit leads in both and lost them by a combined 13 points.
Since we do know how Denver has fared against L.A., though, it's hard not to let that color your perception of this series. Especially when the Lakers lost in such a gut-punch fashion Monday night.
It's hard to tell how this club can recover from that, but clearly any hopes of recovery start with this team finally finding its way past the Nuggets in Game 3 on Thursday night.
"Protect home. That's where my mindset goes," James said. "And obviously, the only game that matters now is Game 3 and how we can get better. How we can figure this team out."
.png?w=480)
.jpg?w=600 "Titans President Steps Down")
