It looks like the Denver Nuggets have already found a solution to their Anthony-Davis dilemma, thanks to their four-time All-Star forward Paul Millsap. The boys from Mile High City finally got into the win column in their best-of-seven West Finals against the Los Angeles Lakers with an impressive 114-106 victory in Game 3.
One of the bigs storylines on Tuesday was the fact that AD figured in an off night shooting the ball with Millsap as his primary defender. Following that virtuoso performance where he hit the winning basket in Game 2, Davis was not himself in Game 3.
The Brow did have 27 points, but he only went 9-of-17 from the field and missed all four of his 3-point attempts. Moreover, the 6-foot-10 forward was limited to a career low two-rebound night in 43 minutes.
Right after the game, ESPN's Ohm Youngmisuk bared some intriguing statistics of how AD fared when Millsap covered him in the first two games of the series.
From @ESPNStatsInfo: Entering tonight, Anthony Davis was 4-13 when Paul Millsap was the primary defender in this series. In Game 3, Millsap held Davis to 1-7 shooting. Davis went 6-8 against all other defenders and 2-2 in transition.
— Ohm Youngmisuk (@NotoriousOHM) September 23, 2020
Lakers forward Anthony Davis is shooting 25 percent against Nuggets forward Paul Millsap in the Western Conference Finals and 65 percent against all other Denver defenders. @ESPNStatsInfo
— Marc J. Spears (@MarcJSpears) September 23, 2020
Given Anthony Davis' well-rounded offensive skillset, Nuggets head coach Mike Malone usually throws multiple defenders his way. All-Star Nikola Jokic can take AD down low, but he's too slow to keep up with him when he makes a move off the dribble.
Backup big Mason Plumlee has the athleticism to hang with Davis, but judging by his horrific Game 2 blunder, he's not the most reliable main defender to blanket the Lakers superstar.
While the 6-foot-7 Millsap does give up several inches against Davis, he is considered one of the smartest players the Nuggets have on both ends of the floor. The 35-year-old forward was even an All-Defensive Second Team member back in 2016.
For what it's worth, Millsap didn't pad the stat sheet in Game 3, notching just six points, eight rebounds, one assist and one steal in 31 minutes. However, it's quite apparent that he does a lot of things not reflected on the scoreboard, which should be vital in the Nuggets' mission to even things up in Game 4.
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