The Los Angeles Lakers looked much better in Game 2, but the Denver Nuggets still rallied late to get the win.
Darvin Ham’s adjustments of going bigger against the Nuggets’ jumbo lineup were solid, and both Jarred Vanderbilt and Rui Hachimura had a nice game defensively.
However, they let a lead slip right through their fingers and failed to execute down the stretch again, looking gassed and tired in the final five minutes of the game.
Even so, Lakers guard Austin Reaves isn’t ready to back down.
“I wish you could win them all but it’s not the nature of any sport.” Austin Reaves is ready to move on and focus on Game 3 Saturday. pic.twitter.com/AeozZ6vlC2
— Spectrum SportsNet (@SpectrumSN) May 19, 2023
He believes his team will face this blow chin-up and bounce back once the series heads back to Southern California.
Reaves was one of the brightest spots in Darvin Ham’s team during the loss, scoring 22 points with three rebounds, five dimes, one steal, and five three-pointers on 8/16 shooting.
He’s established himself as one of the Lakers’ go-to guys, especially late in games, and his offensive execution and bursts of energy have been huge for the purple and gold.
Ham and his coaching staff will need to regroup and hit the drawing board to come up with a solution to Jamal Murray’s offensive explosions.
They did a better job defensively and were better at limiting second-chance points after being dominated on the offensive glass in the first game of the series, but they’re still getting outhustled.
The Nuggets are playing like a legit championship team, and while the Lakers may want to stay calm despite being down 0-2, they need to be better if they want to stand a chance in this series.
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