The Los Angeles Lakers made it two wins out of two on Sunday following a memorable game-winning buzzer-beater by Anthony Davis. L.A. is now 2-0 up against the Denver Nuggets, and as it seems, the Lakers are well on their way to the NBA Finals.
So what to make out of the Lakers' Game 2 win on Sunday? Quite a few. We've rounded out three of the most compelling takeaways from L.A.'s very impressive victory.
LeBron and AD
As soon as the Lakers acquired Anthony Davis from the New Orleans Pelicans last summer, they were instantly propelled as one of the odds on favorites to go all the way this season. They have had their bumps throughout the campaign, but the Lakers — led by this dynamic duo — seems to have hit a different gear here.
Aside from his epic game-winner, Davis also scored L.A.'s last 10 points on Sunday, as he almost single-handedly held off another furious run by the Nuggets late in the fourth period. Even if you look past his late-game heroics, there is still no denying that Davis is absolutely balling for the Lakers right now.
After averaging 27.6 points in the first two rounds of the playoffs against the Portland Trail Blazers and the Houston Rockets, AD is now putting up 34.0 points on 52.3 percent shooting in two games against Denver.
As for LeBron, the old man is averaging 20.5 points on 51.6 percent from the field, to go along with 8.5 rebounds, 8.0 assists, and 1.0 blocks in L.A.'s first two games in the West Finals. His numbers actually don't do justice to just how amazing he has been for the Lakers thus far, and the scary part is that for the most part, he seems to be doing all this on cruise mode.
The big question for the Nuggets here is how they can stop both LeBron and Davis. Or better yet, can they? Denver has failed to do so in the first two games of this series, and if this trend continues, this is going to be a short-lived West Finals.
No Quit in Denver
The Miami Heat out East are staking their claim as the comeback kids in the NBA, but it is clear that the Nuggets have the every right to this title. They've come back from the dead twice already in this amazing playoffs run, overturning a 3-1 series deficit against the Utah Jazz in the first round, and again in the semis against the Los Angeles Clippers.
The Nuggets showed their mettle again in Game 2 against L.A. The Lakers were up by as much as 16 points in the third quarter, and looked well on their way to another blowout win. Denver did not let up, however, and they were able to cut the lead to just four points entering the fourth.
Led by a tremendous performance from Nikola Jokic, the Nuggets were able to take a one-point lead with just seconds remaining on the game clock. They were on the brink of yet another impressive comeback victory. Then, Anthony Davis happened.
Be that as it may, this almost-come-from-behind win proves that there's just no quit in this Nuggets team. They just keep playing. They may be down 2-0 in this series, but they certainly aren't going down without a fight.
Anticipating a Catastrophe
There's just no way around it. Based on what we've seen in the first two games of this series, the Nuggets will need a catastrophic collapse from the Lakers for Denver to be able to upset their opponents. L.A. was already the heavy favorite in this series to begin with, but with the Nuggets now down in a 2-0 hole, the odds could not have been stacked more against them.
Denver deserves a ton of credit for what they've done in this playoffs run, but as it appears, they've finally found their match against the Lakers. Then again, we've said this about the Nuggets before. Nobody thought that they could repeat their first-round miracle in the semis against reigning Finals MVP Kawhi Leonard and the rest of the Clippers.
Are the Nuggets capable of pulling off another improbable upset against the Lakers? After all, they're just 2-0 down at this point. They've been in worst positions.
The answer to that question is, technically, yes. However, this now appears to beyond their control. The Lakers have been very, very good in the playoffs thus far, and they've put their struggles in the seeding games completely behind them at this point. L.A. is currently 10-2 in the postseason, and are on a six-game winning streak. Unfortunately for the Nuggets, there have been no signs of L.A. slowing down anytime soon.
Denver have been hit by a freight train here, and the only way we can see the Nuggets getting out of the West is if the train completely falls of the track.
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