NBA playoffs: 3 things we learned from Nuggets' Game 1 win over Lakers

Jeremy Vernon

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NBA playoffs: 3 things we learned from Nuggets' Game 1 win over Lakers image

The Denver Nuggets took control of their first-round series with the Los Angeles Lakers on Saturday night, weathering a slow start to ultimately win Game 1, 114-103.

This is now the fifth-straight postseason game Denver has won against Los Angeles. The Nuggets also swept the Lakers in last season's Western Conference Finals.

LeBron James, Anthony Davis and Co. led by as many as 12 points in the first half, but they couldn't hold off two-time MVP Nikola Jokic and the defending NBA champions.

Here are three of the biggest takeaways from Saturday night's action, which saw Denver improve to 33-8 at home in 2023-24.

The Joker is the king

Jokic proved why he is arguably the best player in the world Saturday night in front of the home fans at Ball Arena. He ended Game 1 with 32 points, 12 rebounds and seven assists and was almost fully responsible for the Nuggets erasing a double-digit first-half deficit.

Jokic really made his presence known in the third quarter, when he contributed to more points through made baskets and assists (19) than the Lakers scored the entire period (18). The presumptive MVP has totaled at least 30 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists in three of his last four playoff games against Los Angeles.

The Serbian center has now scored at least 30 points in 27 playoff games during his career, nine more than the next closest player — Alex English (18) — in Nuggets' franchise history.

Jokic also had zero turnovers in Game 1. Before Saturday night, he had at least two giveaways in 19 straight playoff games.

Know your role

Arguably the biggest difference between Denver and Los Angeles on Saturday night was the play of their role players. While the Lakers got 59 combined points from James and Davis, the rest of the team shot a combined 17-of-40 (42.5%) from the field.

The biggest disappointment for Los Angeles on Saturday was the play of point guard D'Angelo Russell. After scoring 19 points and knocking down five 3-pointers in the Lakers' Play-In win over New Orleans earlier in the week, Russell totaled 13 points against the Nuggets and made just 1-of-9 attempts from beyond the arc.

Gabe Vincent was another Los Angeles player who struggled to get anything going. He scored nine points in 18 minutes off the bench against the Pelicans, but he did not have a shot attempt in just eight minutes played against Denver on Saturday.

The Nuggets, meanwhile, got huge performances from Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Michael Porter Jr. and Aaron Gordon. Playing against his former team, KCP scored all 13 of his points in the second half, knocking down four triples during a 30-15 Denver run to start the third quarter.

Porter had 19 points and eight rebounds, while Gordon earned a double-double (12 points and 11 rebounds) after collecting six offensive boards. Denver held a 15-6 advantage over Los Angeles in offensive rebounding and an 18-8 edge in second-chance points.

A Playoff Murray sighting?

Game 1 wasn't one of his more electric postseason performances, but Jamal Murray showed several glimpses of the player who has taken over some playoff series in years past.

Entering Saturday's game, Murray had averaged over seven points per game more in the playoffs than the regular season over the course of his career. He had 22 points against the Lakers in the first-round contest and reached 10 assists for the fifth time in his last six postseason games.

While he didn't shoot the ball particularly well against Los Angeles in Game 1 (9-of-24), Murray had several acrobatic finishes at the rim that energized the Ball Arena crowd and helped his team put the game away in the second half.

Last season, Murray averaged 26.1 points, 7.1 assists and 5.7 rebounds per game while helping lead the Nuggets to their first-ever NBA title. If he can play like that again in these playoffs, Denver should be the overwhelming favorite to win the Western Conference, if not the whole thing. 

Jeremy Vernon

Jeremy Vernon Photo

Jeremy Vernon is a reporter and editor from Greensboro, North Carolina, with a decade of experience in the industry. His previous stops include MLB.com and two local papers in N.C. — the Monroe Enquirer-Journal and the Chatham News + Record. When he isn’t working, you can likely find Jeremy at the dog park with his two-year old lab mix, Summer.