It hasn’t been easy, but the Denver Nuggets have been able to get out to a 2-0 series lead against the Los Angeles Lakers in the Western Conference Finals. They have needed some heroic performances to win the two games, with Game 2 being NBA star Jamal Murray’s time to shine.
After a brutal first three quarters, Murray found his shooting stroke when the team needed it most in the fourth. He poured in 23 of his 37 points in the final stanza, helping the Nuggets secure a 108-103 comeback victory.
“He was special,” Nikola Jokic said. “He won us the game basically.”
After starting the game 5-for-17, something clicked for Murray in the fourth quarter. He made 6-of-7 during the final 12 minutes of the game, including four 3-pointers that were the foundation of a 15-1 Denver run in the quarter.
NBA NEWS & PLAYOFFS: Jamal Murray, Denver Nuggets & Los Angeles Lakers Updates
“It would have been a lot easier if I had made them in the first half,” said Murray. After making only seven 3-pointers in the first three-quarters of the game, Denver poured in seven in the fourth alone.
Those are momentum-changing shots, as the Lakers were clearly a bit demoralized watching all of those makes. It wasn’t as if they were wide-open shots either, as Murray was making some difficult ones.
“He made shots at the end of the clock,” LeBron James lamented. “We guard for 24 seconds and he made two big-time shots, one over (Anthony Davis) and one over me. He had his 3-point shot going in the fourth. It’s no surprise to me, he’s done it before. Sometimes it’s a never-miss league.”
Los Angeles didn’t lay down, as they fought until the very end. They cut the lead down to three courtesy of an Austin Reaves jumper, which Murray followed up with two free throws. The Nuggets iced the game when Bruce Brown stole the ball from James on the ensuing possession.
NBA NEWS & PLAYOFFS: Jamal Murray, Denver Nuggets & Los Angeles Lakers Updates
It was a performance that had Nuggets head coach Michael Malone fired up after the game. Malone has not been thrilled with how this series has been covered in the media, letting it be known leading up to and after Game 2.
“You win Game 1 and all everybody talked about was the Lakers,” Malone said. “Let’s be honest, the national narrative was, ‘Hey, the Lakers are fine. They’re down 1-0, but they figured something out.’ No one talked about how Nikola just had a historic performance. He’s got 13 (playoff) triple-doubles now, third all-time. What he’s doing is just incredible.
“But their narrative wasn’t about the Nuggets. The narrative wasn’t about Nikola. The narrative was about the Lakers and their adjustments. So you know, you put that in your pipe and you smoke it, you come back and you know what, we’re gonna go up 2-0.”
NBA NEWS & PLAYOFFS: Jamal Murray, Denver Nuggets & Los Angeles Lakers Updates
The Nuggets franchise has never been this close to making the NBA Finals. But, there is still plenty of work left to do as they need to win two more games in this series. They are now heading on the road to Crypto.com Arena where they will play Games 3 and 4.
It is no small task winning on the road and Denver will be challenged. The Lakers are 8-0 at home thus far this postseason and will be looking to hold serve. It will be interesting to see what adjustments are made by both teams as Game 3 provides the Nuggets a chance to take a nearly insurmountable 3-0 lead.
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