NBA Playoffs Articles - Page 106

LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers lost 132-126 to the Denver Nuggets on Tuesday night, their first Game 1 loss of the 2023 NBA Playoffs — and the King says his team will be better in Game 2. “They’re up 1-0 and we have to come back with desperation going into Game 2,” James […]

The Los Angeles Lakers find themselves in the Western Conference Finals as the seven seed. They also find themselves down one game in that series after a Game 1 loss to the Denver Nuggets. Two-time MVP Nikola Jokic did his thing, notching a triple-double before the third quarter was over. The Lakers stuck around, cutting […]

The Boston Celtics managed to climb their way out of a 3-2 series deficit against the Philadelphia 76ers in the Eastern Conference semifinals to advance to the Eastern Conference Finals. Their opponent will be a familiar one in the Miami Heat, as this will be the third time in the past four years that these […]

The Los Angeles Lakers ran into a Denver Nuggets buzzsaw at the outset of the 2023 Western Conference Finals. They adjusted and fought back, but it wasn’t quite enough. The Nuggets prevailed, 132-126. For the first time in the NBA Playoffs, the Lakers failed to steal Game 1 on the road. Seeding aside, the Lakers […]

As expected, Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic was a massive headache for the Los Angeles Lakers in Game 1 of the 2023 NBA Western Conference Finals. Jokic nearly got everything he wanted during the game, as he stuffed the stat sheet yet again. His performance in Tuesday’s 132-126 home win over the Lakers had former […]

At first glance, Nikola Jokic and LeBron James could not be more different. Jokic isn’t exactly the athlete James is as the Los Angeles Lakers star has lived above the rim and made a living off putting pressure on the opposing paint. However, as Denver Nuggets wing Kentavious Caldwell-Pope said, that is the “only” difference […]

Magic Johnson could not help but comment on the Los Angeles Lakers performance after their Game 1 loss to the Denver Nuggets. In a series of tweets, outlined his frustrations which could also come as constructive criticism. The Nuggets controlled the boards and fast break points. — Earvin Magic Johnson (@MagicJohnson) May 17, 2023   […]

Kentavious Caldwell-Pope has now played with both Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James and Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic in his career, and for him, there’s really not that much of a difference between the two all-time greats. After helping the Nuggets take down his former team on Tuesday, KCP was asked about the similarities […]

The NBA playoffs is almost always a competition between which team can make the necessary adjustments at the most opportune moments. Talent almost always wins out in the end, but matchups, coverages and rotation choices matter. This means that coaching matters. And it definitely seemed like Los Angeles Lakers head coach Darvin Ham stumbled upon […]

Nikola Jokic stole the show in the Denver Nuggets Game 1 escape act against the Los Angeles Lakers on Tuesday night. The former back-to-back MVP stuffed the stat sheet in this one with 34 points on 12-of-17 shooting, 21 rebounds, 14 assists, two blocks, and three triples in 42 minutes of action as Jokic led […]

Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic has done the unthinkable in the first quarter of the NBA Western Conference Finals against the Los Angeles Lakers. Jokic, a stat sheet stuffer extraordinaire, compiled a first quarter line that hasn’t been done in any quarter of any game in the last 25 years. Jokic is the first player […]

A lot will be on the line for both teams when the Los Angeles Lakers take on the Denver Nuggets in the NBA Playoffs Western Conference Finals. At an individual level, LeBron James also has his legacy on the line as he looks to lead the Lakers to their second trip to the NBA Finals […]

Darvin Ham has already joked that his best bet for keeping Nikola Jokic under wraps would be to kidnap him. In the lead-up to Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals between his Los Angeles Lakers and the Denver Nuggets, he has provided a little more insight into how they plan to stop the two-time […]

The Los Angeles Lakers have just thrown a curve ball in the direction of the Denver Nuggets ahead of Game 1 of the NBA Playoffs Western Conference Finals. With just a little over an hour before tipoff, it has now been revealed that coach Darvin Ham intends to give Dennis Schroder the starting nod for […]

It’s no secret that Nikola Jokic has a pretty in-depth understanding of the game of basketball. Few players in history, and let alone those at his position, have shared his ability to understand what’s going on around him, locate where there is an open man – or where he could lead an open man – […]

Denver Nuggets star Jamal Murray remains questionable for Game 1 of their West Finals series with the Los Angeles Lakers. However, head coach Michael Malone is not losing hope that their scorer will be able to suit up in Tuesday’s game. Murray landed on the Nuggets’ injury report on Monday due to what the team […]

The viral TikTok corgi that made headlines during the Los Angeles Lakers-Golden State Warriors series is back with a new prediction. This time, the adorable doggo made its West Finals pick ahead of Purple and Gold’s showdown with the Denver Nuggets. To recall, the TikTok corgi went insanely viral after it correctly predicted the results […]

LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers have an undeniably tough test in the Western Conference Finals in the form of the Denver Nuggets. However, given that his legacy will be at stake here, it would not be surprising if LeBron comes out and dominates this series en route to punching their ticket to the […]

It’s virtually impossible to limit the scope of Nikola Jokic’s influence on offense. A historically efficient three-level scorer who runs either side of ball screens at an elite level and manipulates defenses with the pass like LeBron James, the Denver Nuggets superstar is on the way to cementing himself as one of the several best […]

The Miami Heat, led by Jimmy Butler and Eric Spoelstra, have established a reputation over the last few years for playing uber-physical on both ends of the floor. Especially during the playoffs, the Heat love to muck the game up, and they have had a lot of postseason success implementing this strategy. Miami has advanced […]

The Boston Celtics will take on the Miami Heat in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals on Wednesday in Boston, and Jaylen Brown said the Celtics are not underestimating the Heat in this series, despite them coming in as an eight seed. “They’ve got a tremendous story, being able to go all the way […]

Jimmy Butler and the Miami Heat have already defied expectations after defeating the Milwaukee Bucks and New York Knicks as the No. 8 seed in the Eastern Conference — and the superstar thinks his team will continue its winning ways in the Eastern Conference Final. “This year is our year,” Butler said on Tuesday, according […]

The New York Knicks did not inspire much confidence among fans and pundits entering the 2022-23 season. After all, they only added Jalen Brunson to the core of their 37-win team the past season. But Brunson, despite not having the longest track record of stellar play, proved to be a transformative force as the Knicks […]

Back in the Eastern Conference Finals for the fifth time since 2017, the Boston Celtics will face a very familiar foe in the Miami Heat, who they defeated in the conference finals a season ago. Playing around with his rotations lately, Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla recently made the move to have center Robert Williams […]

Al Horford and Blake Griffin are considered to be the elder statesmen on the Boston Celtics roster. After all, they are the two oldest members of the team. Horford is 36, while Griffin is 33. With their age comes the basketball wisdom that they are sharing with their younger Celtics teammates, and it’s particularly about […]

When the Lakers and Nuggets square off in the Western Conference Finals, the usual logic will be inverted. Somehow, the Nuggets are the high flying juggernaut led by a league-defining superstar at the peak of his powers. The Lakers are the plucky upstart who surged late in the season because of their chemistry and defense. […]

And then there were four. The conference finals are just around the corner, which means franchises are getting closer and closer to the Larry O’Brien Trophy. That is the case for the Boston Celtics, who are trying to win the title for the first time since 2008. With their series against the Miami Heat starting […]

The NBA Playoffs continue as the Miami Heat (44-38) visit the Boston Celtics (57-25) for Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals! Action tips off Wednesday at 8:30 p.m. ET. To get to the Eastern Conference Finals, Miami took down New York in six while Boston eliminated Philadelphia in seven. Below we continue our NBA […]

For ESPN personality Stephen A. Smith, the Boston Celtics are the team to beat among the four franchises who have made it to the conference finals round in the 2023 NBA Playoffs. “When you’re looking at the 4 teams remaining, it’s justifiable to call the Boston Celtics the favorite to win it all,” Smith said […]

For most of the world, 2020 is a reminder of a painful and overly long wasted year, what with the rapid spread of COVID-19 forcing lockdowns all over the globe and effectively changing life as we know it. But fans of the Los Angeles Lakers, at the very least, have something to fondly look back […]

The Denver Nuggets have looked every bit the part of the Western Conference’s number-one seed. They’ve thoroughly dispatched the Minnesota Timberwolves and a depleted Phoenix Suns side with relative ease. Now, they face their biggest challenge yet in the Los Angeles Lakers, a rematch of the 2020 NBA Bubble Western Conference Finals. With Nuggets-Lakers set […]

The Miami Heat are back in the Eastern Conference Finals and preparing for a rematch with the Boston Celtics from the bubble in 2020. It should be a highly entertaining series between two fairly different teams, although both led by big names. As Game 1 tips off on Wednesday night, the Heat will be led […]

One of the biggest storylines of the upcoming 2023 Western Conference Finals between the Denver Nuggets and the Los Angeles Lakers is the fact that this would be the second time in three years that these teams will be meeting in the same round. Nikola Jokic surely remembers that 2020 series in the bubble against […]

The Los Angeles Lakers and Denver Nuggets begin the Western Conference Finals on Tuesday at Ball Arena. As with the Miami Heat-Boston Celtics series, it’ll be a rematch of the 2020 conference finals in the bubble. The Lakers won in five, although LeBron James, Anthony Davis, Nikola Jokic, Jamal Murray, and Michael Porter Jr. are […]

The Denver Nuggets and Los Angeles Lakers are back in the Western Conference Finals. But since they last played each other in 2020, only Nikola Jokic, LeBron James, Anthony Davis, Jamal Murray and Michael Porter Jr. are on their original teams and the Lakers have a new coach in Darvin Ham. The Nuggets have barely […]

The stakes are high in the NBA Playoffs with the championship up for grabs for the best teams in the NBA. But while teams and players are expected to shine the brightest in the playoffs, not everyone is capable of playing with the pressure of the postseason. Let’s take a look at the 10 biggest […]

The 2023 Western Conference Finals between the No. 7 seed Los Angeles Lakers and No. 1 seed Denver Nuggets tips off Tuesday at Ball Arena. The stakes, intrigue, and quality of play both teams are bringing into this bubble rematch are Mile High. The Nuggets have been the class of the West all season, while […]

The Miami Heat did not enter the 2023 NBA playoffs with much fanfare. But now, after making quick work of the team with the best record in the NBA this past season in the Milwaukee Bucks and following that up with a hard-fought six-game series victory over the New York Knicks, it’s difficult to doubt […]

The most important players for the Los Angeles Lakers in their Western Conference Finals matchup against the Denver Nuggets are, wait for it … LeBron James and Anthony Davis. The depth the Lakers have accrued has refreshingly eased the playmaking/scoring burden from LeBron and AD, but they’ve won two rounds, first and foremost, because of […]