Luka Doncic, new-look Lakers dominate Nuggets to end 9-game win streak
Weirdly, it was the Nuggets’ offense that wasn’t able to handle the new-look Lakers on Saturday.
A 10-game win streak eludes the Nikola Jokic era in Denver.
With a chance to pull one off Saturday night, the Nuggets turned in one of their sloppiest games of the season, committing 20 turnovers in a 123-100 loss to the Lakers at Ball Arena. Denver fell back into third place in the Western Conference, behind Oklahoma City and Memphis.
In his fourth game wearing purple and gold since a shocking blockbuster trade from the Mavericks, Luka Doncic out-dueled his friend Jokic, amassing 32 points, 10 rebounds, seven assists and four steals. Despite registering his 26th triple-double of the season, Jokic attempted only seven shots from the field in 35 minutes. He made two.
Winners of 13 of their last 14 against the Lakers and eight consecutive head-to-head matchups at home, the Nuggets (37-20) were taken out of their comfort zone by a new-look Los Angeles roster. Anthony Davis was the player cashed in for Doncic, but somehow it was the Lakers’ defense that affected the hosts most. Denver shot 40% from the floor.
Meanwhile, Los Angeles had four 20-point scorers. LeBron James contributed 25 points, nine boards, five assists and three blocks.
“Two guys that you can play through,” Nuggets coach Michael Malone said of the James-Doncic duo. “I think after one of their last games, somebody asked Luka, ‘End of games, (in the) clutch, who’s it gonna be (taking the last shot)?’ And he says, ‘Well, we’ll take turns.’ What a great luxury to have.”
Jamal Murray, Denver’s own dependable last-shot taker, made 6 of 11 outside shots in the loss but didn’t score inside the arc. He finished with 19 points and five turnovers.
Michael Porter Jr. has feasted on the Lakers in recent meetings, including last season’s first-round playoff series, when he averaged 22.8 points on 49% shooting beyond the arc. But he struggled Saturday in his second game back from a hamstring injury that stalled his momentum before the All-Star break. After Murray knocked down consecutive 3s to slice Denver’s deficit in half in the last two minutes before halftime, Porter missed an open three in transition that would have blown the lid off Ball Arena and made it a one-score game. The Nuggets went into the intermission down 63-54 instead.
Los Angeles showed them a playoff game plan. Anyone lacking a reputation as a lethal shooter was invited to fire up jumpers. Aaron Gordon made JJ Redick pay in the first quarter by sinking his open 3s. Russell Westbrook was not able to replicate that success during a rough stint with the bench unit in the second frame.
Rui Hachimura took the lead in the Jokic matchup. But the Lakers swarmed him in the post whenever he tried to put the ball on the floor, shrinking their defense and jamming Denver’s passing lanes. That included fronting him to deny easy entry passes. Denver wasn’t game for the challenge. Twelve first-half turnovers, most of them interceptions, turned into 23 points.
Every run was met by an equal and opposite force. The Nuggets started the second half on an 8-0 burst with help from a Doncic technical foul for yapping on his way to the locker room. As soon as the deficit got to one, Los Angeles punched back with a 10-0 run. When Westbrook got into a rhythm late in the third quarter, the defense couldn’t take advantage. He made two 3-pointers, both immediately answered by Hachimura and Austin Reaves.
Hachimura held his own against the larger Jokic throughout the night. He also scored 21 points on 12 shots before leaving with an injury early in the fourth quarter.
Denver’s depth was tested. A critical wing defender was missing in Peyton Watson. And Julian Strawther picked up three fouls in his first 80 seconds on the court as a sub, disrupting Malone’s rotation plans. In the same 80 seconds, Jarred Vanderbilt checked in for Los Angeles and made an instant impact with his pressure and physicality. That helped the Lakers set their terms, even if he also ended up back on the bench with three quick fouls trying to take Jokic’s space away.
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