“So you put that in your pipe, you smoke it and you come back and you know what, we’re going to go up 2-0.”īefore the game, Malone made a passive-aggressive reference to the conversation about how the Lakers had earned momentum in the fourth quarter of Game 1 by matching Rui Hachimura up with Jokic defensively. The narrative was about the Lakers and their adjustments. No letup from the Lakers to start the third quarter. What he’s doing is just incredible, but the narrative wasn’t about the Nuggets. The Lakers match their largest lead of the game, going ahead by 17 points with scores at 70-53. He’s got 13 triple-doubles now, third all-time. “Let’s be honest, that’s what the national narrative was: ‘Hey, the Lakers are fine, they’re down 1-0, but they figured something out.’ No one talked about Nikola just had a historic performance. “I think a lot of our guys, to be honest, they may not admit this or not, but you win Game 1 of the playoffs and all everybody talked about was the Lakers,” Malone said. When asked after Thursday’s Game 2 win over the Lakers if the Nuggets have “a chip on their shoulder,” Malone told reporters that he hopes so. That's to say the Lakers will be doing everything they can to get a win on the road, but everything might not be enough.NBA coaches and players always talk about tuning out noise, but Nuggets coach Michael Malone is instead using criticism of his team as fuel for spicy playoff press conferences as his team leads the Western Conference finals 2-0. Quite frankly, they play like they don't have a sense of humor. Yet, it's got to be said that the Nuggets are no joke. So, what to expect? It would be reasonable to believe that the Lakers aren't going to take their Game 1 loss lying down, especially knowing that to go 2-0 down would not be ideal to say the least. Indeed, the fact that he narrowly missed out on a second straight MVP award and has led his team to the Conference Finals - the actual MVP has since gone home - only further confirms the idea. On the other, we've got a guy who is steadily affirming his status as one of the greats of today's game. Byron Scott Believes No One Will Break LeBron James Scoring. On the one side, we've got a legend of the game and arguably the greatest player ever to play it - trigger warning for Michael Jordan fans. Kukoc, who won three NBA championships with Jordan, doesnt believe LeBron and MJ can be compared. But he carded the same score as the legendary Jack Nicklaus, who may have. Sunday, he scored a career-high 35 points in the Lakers’ 111-105 win against. Right now, we need to take some time to appreciate what we accomplished this. Tonight's game between the Lakers and the Nuggets promises to be an intense battle. The Lakers take their time on the ensuing possession, and a pass is tipped out of bounds with 31.1 seconds left on the game clock. Trent Swaim, left, and Keaton Wheeler, friends of Austin Reaves, who grew up in Arkansas with the Lakers guard. We're now less than minutes away from tip off in Game 2 of the Western Conference finals and we can safely say, we're excited. Ultimately, this series is far from over but it would be naive to think that the Lakers can do anything less than turn in sensational performances from this point on, if they're to get back in it.Ī goodnight to all of you and don't forget to join us again for Game 3! Lakers Nation is your one stop for Los Angeles Lakers news today, including the latest coverage, analysis, rumors, score updates & more. That's before we mention the manner in which he freaked out in the 4th with an incredible shooting display from beyond the arc. The Canadian point guard was everywhere - he played the entire second half - and then some. Yet, mention has got to be made of Jamal Murray one again. In defense of the Serbian's not-so-prolific night, he too was key on defense, with a solid shift against Anthony Davis. Indeed, James was stellar on defense, forcing several turnovers out of Jokic in fact. Where the stars are concerned, it's got to be said that both LeBron James and Nikola Jokic had quiet nights offensively, but that's not to say they weren't key for their respective teams in other ways. With 22 second half points, Murray is the main reason why the Nuggets now have a 2-0 lead in the Western Conference finals. That is until Jamal Murray simply went off. In what was a tight game right through, LA actually maintained a lead for the majority of it. It goes without saying that the Lakers are now in trouble, but it would be unfair to say that they don't have the quality, talent and grit to get out of it as was clearly evidenced tonight. The Lakers & Nuggets put on a show in Game 2 but the star of it all was Jamal Murray
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