LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers are preparing for an exciting Western Conference Finals matchup with the Denver Nuggets. Ahead of the series, LeBron made sure to give credit to this year's Nuggets squad compared to the team the Lakers faced in the 2020 Western Conference Finals.

“Every game, every postseason, every matchup allows you to continue to grow as a franchise and as a team… [I] look forward to the matchup.”

LeBron emphasizes that this team is much better than the one they faced in 2020, and there is going to be no room for error. With how the Nuggets have looked so far in the postseason, these comments from the Lakers star come as no surprise.

The Nuggets have been led by more dominant play from Nikola Jokic. The Serbian big man is averaging 30.7 points, 12.8 rebounds and 9.7 assists through two rounds. For the Lakers, Anthony Davis is going to have quite the challenge guarding Jokic.

If anyone in the league does have the ability to guard Jokic, it would be the Lakers big man. He has put himself back in the argument of best defensive player in the league in 2023 NBA Playoffs, especially with his rim protection. Davis is averaging a whopping 3.3 blocks per game through two rounds, numbers he will have to keep up against the Nuggets.

The series will begin on Tuesday night in Denver, so both the Lakers and Nuggets will spend Monday getting their mind and bodies right. For LeBron James, this is the type of preparation he has gotten used to over his illustrious 20-year career.