2023-05-23 06:10:58
Los Denver Nuggets sealed their qualification for their first NBA Finals on Monday thanks to an impressive sweep against Los Angeles Lakers by LeBron James (111-113 in the fourth game 0-4 in the total of the final of the West).
The team led by Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray, who was the best in the West in the regular season, will seek the first ring in its history against the winner of the Eastern final, which the Miami Heat dominate 3-0 against the Boston Celtics .
With its shocking and unappealable victory by the fastest way against the Lakers, Denver also ended a streak of four straight West finals in which it ended up biting the dust. LeBron, in a titanic and memorable night in which he only rested 4 seconds of the 48 minutes of the matchhe had two options to force overtime but his first shot went to the side of the board and the second, already on the buzzer, was blocked by Aaron Gordon.
With the statistics against him since he has never come back from 3-0 against in the NBA, LeBron took responsibility at the moment of greatest despair for his team and, at 38 years old, gave a wonderful recital of 40 points (15 of 25 shooting), 10 rebounds and 9 assists. LeBron dazzled with 21 points in the first quarter and reached 31 before halftime (a new record for him in a half of the playoffs).
But all that sweat, effort and epic took its toll on him in a second half that he came to with very little strength and in the end they were useless against some extraordinarily solid, compact and fearsome Nuggets. Nikola Jokic had 30 points, 14 rebounds and 13 assists and took the ‘Magic’ Johnson award to the MVP of the Western final. The Serbian genius added his eighth triple-double in these playoffs and thus achieved a new record beating Wilt Chamberlain (seven in 1967). Murray (25 points) and Gordon (22 points) also shone in an overwhelming Nuggets in the third quarter (16-36) and who prevailed in a fierce combat with very limited rotations (Mike Malone used only seven players and Darvin Ham used eight of the Lakers). Anthony Davis, from less to more, finished with 21 points and 14 rebounds for a Los Angeles team that closed its roller coaster this season after a disastrous start (2-10), a fabulous comeback and some exciting playoffs in which they eliminated the Memphis Grizzlies and the Golden State Warriors.
LeBron, go for it
With no room for error, Ham kicked off his entire attacking arsenal with Dennis Schroder and Rui Hachimura replacing the much-misguided D’Angelo Russell and Jarred Vanderbilt. With LeBron, Davis and Austin Reaves rounding out the most offensive quintet possible, an 11-4 start encouraged those in purple and gold before the Lakers’ number 6 took over the match. With only one mission between his eyebrows and a razor-sharp killer instinct, LeBron showed off with an immense 11 of 13 shooting from the field in the first quarter including a perfect 4 of 4 on 3s. Everything worked out great for an inexhaustible LeBron, so much so that he happened to hit a very lucky 3-pointer when he was looking for an ‘alley-oop’ for Hachimura. Kentavious Caldwell-Pope responded with three 3-pointers for the visitors, but LeBron’s 21 points were enough for the Lakers will close ahead (34-28) a first quarter of striking statistics such as Davis’s 8 rebounds or Jokic’s 6 assists.
Two straight three-pointers from Schroder and a tap-off from LeBron gave the Lakers their first major lead (55-43 with 5:18 to go). The Nuggets, logically with a point less urgent than some Lakers on a tightrope, suffered notable defensive mismatches and allowed 36 points in the paint. Instead, the angelenos finished the first half on a high (73-58) and they left the anecdote of the night with the entry of the practically unprecedented Tristan Thompson, the best example that they were going to try absolutely anything to avoid 4-0.
Denver soars
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A drag on these very short gasoline Lakers has been their irregularity and inconsistency throughout the four quarters. This time the bump was in the third period and it turned out to be a huge crater for the locals, who conceded a painful 16-36 in the third quarter (89-94 upon reaching the last period). A huge Jokic, with 13 points and 10 rebounds in that penultimate quarter alone, led the charge for some Nuggets who came back taking advantage of the Lakers’ countless shooting errors. missing very easy baskets (7 of 24 in that quarter) and in the protection of the painting. Denver grabbed six offensive rebounds and the comeback basket was scored by Caldwell-Pope with a two plus one after his team’s three straight attacking rebounds. Faced with some Nuggets in which they added from Murray to Gordon through Porter Jr., LeBron, with clear signs of exhaustion, only scored 4 goals in some Lakers with low energy.
Already in the last quarter, Jokic committed two offensive fouls on LeBron and was only one away from going to the shower. In addition, a recovered Davis for the cause tied the game for the Lakers with five minutes left. The outcome left incredible images such as an amazing triple by Jokic in ‘fadeaway’, on one leg and in the last second of possession. At the last minute, Jokic put the Nuggets two up, the Lakers were no longer able to score despite the attempts of a LeBron with his tongue hanging out and Denver got the ticket for the first Finals in its history.
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