Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals between the Denver Nuggets and Los Angeles Lakers is going to go down as all-timer. LeBron James triple-double, Anthony Davis 40-piece with sauce, Nikola Jokic with a 30-point 20-rebound triple double, a game decided by six points, and a raucous crowd. The very stars were aligned to grant viewers a masterpiece. However, it did not start off that way. Here are some things I saw in Game 1 of the 2023 Western Conference Finals, as well as some things I would like to see in this series moving forward.
For starters (pun intended), the Lakers decided to keep Dennis Schröder in the starting rotation in place of Jarred Vanderbilt. After all, that was the change that helped them seal the fate of Steph Curry’s Warriors in the previous round. In theory, it would provide the same advantage it did before: more shooters around LeBron and AD. But what they gave up was defense and size. Specifically, they gave up rebounding, and the Nuggets made them pay dearly. In the first quarter alone, Jokic had 12 rebounds. For reference, the Lakers had six. Total. As a team. Yikes. Jokic was also just playing really solid defense and was sure to get a body on AD whenever he could.
Denver also wanted to push the pace early on, particularly on drives. Whenever the Lakers attempted a layup, Denver’s perimeter players would leak out and look to score early. They especially looked to do this whenever AD tried to score. AD has the most blocks in the playoffs so far, and the Nuggets were not going to give him a chance to get in position if they didn’t absolutely have to. It seemed to be working for them. But if they were unable to get points on the break, they went to the well that never seems to run dry: Nikola Jokic. Kinda.
The Nuggets ran a lot of a set they called “2.” Jokic would get the ball at the top of the key, then Michael Porter Jr. set a pin-down for Jamaal Murray. Murray then got a dribble hand off (DHO) from Jokic and got to work. It proved to be a super effective play. The Nuggets were able to generate a lot of different looks from it. For example, when they first called it, they were able to get an open MPJ three ball. Two possessions later, they ran the play again, and Murray was able to get a wide open three directly from the handoff. The next possession, they ran it again. MPJ noticed the target of his screen, Schröder, fell behind the play and was able to get to the rim and draw a foul.
If you’re the Lakers, this play is very tricky to guard with the personnel on both sides of the ball. If AD helped too much at the point of the handoff, Jokic would have had almost free points in the paint on the much smaller Schröder. If Austin Reeves and Schröder switch, then the latter is left in another height mismatch with the tall and athletic MPJ. If the defense wanted to blitz the action to blow it up, the ball still would’ve been in the hands of Nikola Jokic, the current best basketball player in the world (I will not apologize for being correct). It was a lose-lose. At least, it was at first, but more on that later.
As I said before, Denver wanted to push the pace, and they were able to do so strategically. If Jokic decided to jog behind the break as a trailer, he still had immense gravity. AD had to wait for him close to the three point line because he has been shooting the lights out in the playoffs (47% from a CENTER). That allowed the athletic wings and guards to get to the rim without having to worry about The Brow lurking to send their shots into the fourth row.
The entire first half was rough for the Lakers. It looked like Denver was just going to have their way with them the entire night. However, AD was shaping up to have a great night. He shot 50% from the field in the half, and he had a lot of success shooting from midrange and quickly pulling the trigger with some baby hooks and push shots. What shocked me was the lack of LeBron-AD pick-and-roll in the first half. But watching the game back, it looked like they weren’t going to go to that until they deemed it was absolutely necessary. Instead, King James took on a different strategy: find and bully Jamaal Murray.
With 2:22 remaining in the first quarter, LA had to inbound from in front of their bench. Reeves gave the ball to Davis at the elbow and immediately received a rip screen from LeBron. The Nuggets did not communicate the action well and Murray got stuck with LeBron. Bron got the handoff from Davis and was able to involve Jokic in the action as well. Because Jokic wanted to deny AD on the roll, LeBron was able to get to the rim with ease as Murray trailed WAY behind the play. It was probably my favorite play that the Lakers ran all night because they got to: 1.) pick on Murray, and 2.) involve Jokic on defense. If the Lakers want to win the series, they have to be able to drain Jokic at every available opportunity. They did that with their very play of the game, but got away from it as the game continued. Anyway, the next play possession, LeBron scored on Murray again, that time choosing to back him all the way down for an easy layup. And again, Bron took the final shot of the opening quarter over, you guessed it, Jamaal Murray.
Those LeBron postups on Murray also set up the Denver defense for the rest of the night. When LeBron got Murray with about 1:28 left in the first, Jeff Green had to come help. If he had wanted to, Bron could’ve easily gotten the ball to Reeves at the three point line for a clean look. But I think he was saving that for the rest of the game. About halfway through the second quarter, James actually got the ball to Reeves for a great look that just barely missed. I think I would’ve liked to see more of that, maybe with Schröder in the mix to get him going. Regardless, it seemed like a sound enough strategy. Denver kept responding though, and throughout the second they ran some more sets that I liked, including a post split at the right elbow and a play they called… well, “Elbow.” It was another Jokic-Murray DHO at the top of the key, but it gave Aaron Gordon an opportunity to rim run with a rip screen from Murray. They ran it with 3:03 left in the quarter, and again the next possession. That second execution got Jokic maybe the most open three point opportunity that he’ll ever have, but he opted to put pressure on the defense and was able to get to the line. By halftime the Nuggets were up big, 72-54.
The third quarter was more of the same and not worth talking about much. But Bruce Brown got a really sweet dunk and I loved that for him. AD also got loose and went 5-for-5 from the field. But neither team really seemed to change much at halftime. But the fourth quarter provided a different story.
In the third, the Nuggets began to get sloppy. A turnover here, and missed defensive assignment there. Despite being down by 20 at times, the Lakers refused to go away and were able to surge back as the game drew to a close. But how did they do it? For one, the Lakers went to the tried and true LeBron-AD P&R. They got a lot of really good looks just from running what they are built around (imagine that). James also continued to bully Murray, as well as prey on MPJ’s seeming inability to play defense at times. The Murray bullying was not just LeBron trying to score though. At the 10:15 mark, he saw that Rui Hachimura had a mismatch with Murray, who was trying to front him down low. Bron immediately got him the ball and was rewarded with an assist. And speaking of Rui Hachimura, the Lakers might have found their Game 2 strategy in him.
He had a great game overall, posting 17 points on 11 shots. But where he really stuck out was defensively. In the final quarter of play, Darvin Ham called for Rui to guard Jokic, and it was brilliant. Rui is strong enough to bang with Jokic and lengthy enough to not give up too much size to the Serbian. What this really did was allow AD to guard Jeff Green and hang out more in the paint. Denver’s shot quality took a noticeable dip after the change. Between Hachimura’s offensive contributions and his defensive utility, I expect the Lakers will play him more, if not outright start him for Game 2. He can shoot, he’s got size, and he’s a decent defender. Regardless of what happens, I am excited to see how both teams adjust for the next game. Strap in, ladies and gentlemen. No matter how many games this series goes to, we are in for a treat.
Full Court Dime 