It's evident that it's gonna come down to how much LeBron attacks the rim for dunks over the course of the series at his age and what his rim protection's like at the other end, because Denver's clearly better across the board. That's the only exploitable weakness. Jokic being a play-making passer makes it difficult for Davis to both be on him and defend the rim on the others. The Lakers are down double-digits early, LeBron with consecutive baskets, but the Nuggets take a 12-point lead to the quarter break. Davis blocks Jokic, but Jokic's still having his way, Denver kick it out to 18 going into the half. Jokic dominant, but every Denver player involved in the action. Caldwell-Pope makes consecutive 3's in the 3rd. The Lakers had cut into the deficit late, but Jokic hits a ridiculous 3 and the Nuggets are up 14. Murray hits his own ridiculous shot too, making a comeback difficult. Hachimura playing well for the Lakers, gets blocked by Porter though. The Lakers start getting easy points in the penalty and have success with Hachimura on Jokic, allowing Davis to help. They bring the margin back, Reaves with back to back 3's. Denver gets over the line though, taking a 1-0 lead in the series. Both teams shot lights out, almost identical. Denver shooting more 3's, the Lakers more production at the line. Both teams took care of the ball as well, the Lakers with just 7 turnovers. Denver +17 on the boards though, mostly offense. Jokic with a super efficient 34-point triple-double, with 14 assists, 21 boards, 6 offensive and 2 blocks. Murray an efficient 31 points, 5 assists, 5 boards and 3 steals, with just 1 turnover. Porter 15 points, 10 boards and 2 blocks. Caldwell-Pope 21 points and 2 steals. For the Lakers, Davis an efficient 40 points, 10 boards, 3 steals and 2 blocks, without a turnover. Reaves an efficient 23 points and 8 assists, no turnovers. LeBron 26 points, 9 assists and 12 boards. Hachimura 17 points off the bench, 8 of 11 from the field.
3. (Den) N. Jokic, 2. (Lal) A. Davis, 1. (Den) J. Murray.
3. (Den) N. Jokic, 2. (Lal) A. Davis, 1. (Den) J. Murray.