The Denver Nuggets are preparing to host the Los Angeles Lakers in the first round of the 2024 NBA Playoffs. The latter of these two secured the seventh seed earlier this week following their nail-biting win over the New Orleans Pelicans in the NBA’s Play-In tournament. Now, they’ll head to Denver for Game 1 on Saturday hoping to avenge their loss from last year’s Western Conference Finals.
Despite the Nuggets starting the series as heavy favorites, head coach Mike Malone revealed he was wary of the threat the Lakers pose. He admitted that he was especially worried about LeBron James, whom he spoke highly of and also took a cheeky dig at during an interview on Thursday. He said the following on the matter, per Harrison Wind.
“It’s Year 21 and the guy is getting better. He had a career-high from the three-point line this year. It’s really amazing when you sit back as a fan of the game. And not just his body of work, but what he’s doing in present day, it’s incredible. So, I hope he gets tired. I hope he wears down. But I’ve seen no signs of LeBron James slowing down by any means. And I think it’s gonna be another hell of a challenge for the group.”
As Malone explained, James has continued to defy Father Time in Year 21 in the NBA. He has had another exceptional campaign, something that has him well set up to earn yet another All-NBA nod. He averaged 25.7 points, 8.3 assists, 7.3 rebounds, and 1.3 steals while shooting a career-high 41% from beyond the arc [per Statmuse] to help the Lakers finish seventh in the Western Conference standings. Further, he even recorded a near-triple-double in the play-in game against the New Orleans Pelicans, scoring 23 points, 9 rebounds, and 9 assists, per NBA.com. While he did not have the best shooting night, (30% from the field, and 20% from three-point range), the 39-year-old has shown that he can still come up big for his team when the stakes are at their highest.
James remains steadfast as ever in his quest to add yet another ring to his collection, something that should worry the defending NBA champions. While they did sweep the Lakers in the Western Conference Finals last season, the Denver Nuggets may just have far more problems against this team this time around.
The Los Angeles Lakers’ horrendous record vs. the Nuggets
The Lakers have had a torrid time against the Nuggets off late. They beat them twice in the regular season last year, but have since lost eight straight games against them [per Statmuse], including their 4-0 series loss in the Playoffs, against their Western Conference foes.
During the Lakers’ media day before the season commenced, Lakers’ superstar forward Anthony Davis claimed that the team intended to avenge their playoff series loss against Denver this year. However, those plans went right out of the window as the Nuggets went 4-0 against LA in the regular season.
Davis, LeBron James, and the Lakers now have yet another opportunity to get some sweet old revenge on their Nikola Jokic and Co. during the most important stage of their season so far. However, can the team really go against the trend set so far? Or will they falter when it matters most?
Only time will tell.
