With the game on the line, Denver didn't go to their three time NBA MVP. They went to their closer. Jamal Murray was made for pressure situations like this. On a night that they didn't seem to have their best stuff, Murray came through and delivered Denver a win in a huge game that had plenty of implications in the Western Conference.
The Nuggets are now in second place in the West, with the Grizzlies right behind them. the Lakers are falling behind after losing their fourth straight game. Luka should be back by Sunday for the game against the Suns, but LeBron may not be back for another week.
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Reaves knew it was going to be up to him to carry the Lakers with no LeBron or Luka and he played the role of both Luka and LeBron. He scored 37 points, dished 13 assists and had 8 rebounds and had big play after big play, both on the offensive and defensive end down the stretch.
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LA would take the lead in the fourth quarter but Denver went on a 14-3 run which started with these two bucket from Michael Porter Jr. and again, it looked like the game was over. But Austin Reaves had other ideas.
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Denver came out of the halftime break on a heater and it looked like it was going to get ugly but LA just kept on hanging around. The lead stretched out to 13 in the third quarter but Austin Reaves and Dalton Knecht seemed to have an answer for everything the Nuggets threw at them.
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It wasn't that the Nuggets were playing bad against what was basically LA's second and third unit. The Lakers stepped up and took it at Denver all night. Everytime it seemed like Denver was going to pull away, the Lakers would counter and even up the game or take the lead.
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Jamal Murray was as steady and consistent as always. Despite that the Nuggets spent the entire first half behind on the scoreboard. Jokic had 18 at the break but only had 3 assists as he drew double and triple teams all night.
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It was Russell Westbrook and the second unit that brought a little pick me up to the Nuggets offense. Westbrook wasn't just running the break but he was hitting threes against his former team. He ended the night with 17, 6 and 7 assists.
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Aaron Gordon came back from injury for the game against the Lakers and made an immediate impact. He had 17 points in his return but did so much more than that with his defensive intensity and energy on the boards.
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The Lakers were missing six guys in total, so that meant everyone had to step up. Bronny James was one of the ones that was called upon on Friday, and he stepped up at times in the first quarter. The Lakers scored 40 points in the first quarter with no Luka and LeBron and were able to take the Nuggets all the way to the finish line.
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The Denver Nuggets face neither LeBron James nor Luka Doncic in Ball Arena on Friday night, but still had a tough time dealing with Austin Reaves and the rest of the Los Angeles Lakers. Nikola Jokic led the way with 26 points, but it was Jamal Murray who had the final say.
Murray got the night going with the opening bucket of the game for a Nuggets team that came out flat, and took their time to find their groove.
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126-131
IT'S ALL OVER FROM DENVER!!!
The Nuggets fend off the shorthanded Lakers
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126-131
Westbrook picks off the inbound pass and slams it home!!!
IT'S ALL OVER!!
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126-129
Murray off the Jokic screen and he drills the three ball from the top of the key!!!
Timeout LA with 5.1 to go!!!
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126-126
Jokic to the bucket and he pump fakes, draws a foul on Koloko and gets the bucket! FT is good with 48 to go.
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126-123
Reaves with another steal and he slips it off to Knecht who slams it down but came crashing down on his head after the jam. He walks to the bench and we go to timeout with 52 to go!
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124-123
Reaves sprints to the cup and lays it up and in after striping Jokic.
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122-123
Goodwin in the corner and he drills the triple try!!!
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119-123
Goodwin sends Gordon to the line and he hits both FTs with 1:49 to go.
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119-121
Milton finds Knecht in the corner and he drills the three ball. LA aren't done yet.
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116-121
Braun with the steal and the slam after Reaves got the ball poked out from behind by Jokic!
Timeout Lakers with 2:31 to go in the 4th.
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116-119
Murray pulls the trigger from the top of the key and he threads it!
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116-116
Reaves to the line after the foul on Murray and he hits both FTs.
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114-116
Jokic to the line after the foul on Knecht, and he hits one of two FTs.
3:20 to go.
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114-115
Murray with the floater off the glass and the Nuggets lead again with under 4:00 to go.
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114-113
Vanderbilt to the line after the foul on Jokic and he hits one of two FTs.
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113-113
Jokic running the break and he finds Porter Jr. for the lay up in traffic.
Timeout Lakers with 4:25 to go in the fourth.
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113-111
Braun running the break and he finds Porter up ahead for the open jam.
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113-109
Jokic with the off balanced floater and he gets it to go.
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113-107
Reaves into the lane, hesitates, pumps and goes off the glass.
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111-107
Braun to the line after the foul on Vanderbilt and he hits both FTs.
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111-105
Morris was left all alone on the perimeter and Goodwin found him for the three ball!!!
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108-105
Long rebound by Vanderbilt and he finds Reaves who pulls the trigger from outside with the time winding down!
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105-105
Watson to the line after the foul on Koloko and he hits one of two FTs.
7:25 to go in the 4th.
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105-104
Westbrook down the lane and he slips it off to Watson for the baseline slam.
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105-102
Knecht had his first shot underneath blocked, got it back and laid it up and in.
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103-102
Offensive rebound from Koloko and Goodwin finds Knecht for the wide open lay up!!!
Timeout Nuggets who trail by 1 with 9:22 to go in the 4th!!!
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101-102
Knecht cuts it to a one point game with a steal and score.
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99-102
WE ARE HEADING TO THE FOURTH QUARTER AND THE SHORTHANDED LAKERS STILL HAVE A CHANCE IN DENVER!!
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99-102
Goodwith on the step back from the FT line with the shot clock winding down and he gets the roll!
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97-102
Nnaji with the offensive rebound and he gets it to go on the second atttempt.
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97-100
Milton finids Koloko on the break and he skies and slams it home!
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95-100
Extra pass from Milton who finds Goodwin in the corner and he drills the three ball!
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92-100
Braun euro steps past a defender and lays it up and in.
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92-98
Milton with the mid range jumper and the Lakers aren't going away just yet.
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90-98
Reaves to the line after the foul on Braun and he hits both FTs. They'll need him to step up for the rest of the way.
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88-98
Reaves lobs it up and Koloko slams home the alley oop.
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86-98
Extra pass to Murray on the perimeter and he hits the three ball!
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86-95
Jokic to the line after the foul on Knecht and he hits both FTs.
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86-93
Knecht to the line after the foul on Gordon and he hits one of two FTs.
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Timeout Nuggets with under 5:00 to go in the 3rd quarter.
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85-93
Jokic to the line after the foul on Vanderbilt and he misses both
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85-93
Milton with the an one after the foul on Murray and he hits the FT.
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82-93
Knecht working on the interior and he hits the mid range jumper.
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80-93
Braun looks ahead and finds Jokic for the slam on the break.
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80-91
Porter Jr. answers back with a three ball from the wing!
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80-88
Long offensive board from LA and it fell for Knecht who drills a long three ball!!
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77-88
Milton puts up an off balanced shot in the lane and he gets it to go.
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75-88
Murray with a pull up three ball and he drills it!!! Denver have their biggest lead of the night and the Lakers need a timeout.
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75-85
Len slips it off to Vanderbilt who lays it up and in.
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73-85
Murray puts up a circus shot in traffic and he gets it to fall.
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73-83
Reaves back to the rack and he lays it up and in again.
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71-83
Timeout Lakers after a slow start to their second half.
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71-83
Porter Jr. finds Murray running the break and Murray goes straight to the rack for the lay up.
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71-81
Gordon finds Porter dashing to the rack and he lays it up and in.
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71-79
Len was left a lane and he takes it and lays it up.
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69-79
Braun with a three ball from the top of the key!!!! Denver ties their biggest lead of the night.
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69-76
Reaves to the rack and he lay it up and in.
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67-76
Gordon steps into a three ball and drills it! He's got 15 on the night!
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67-73
Braun fighting for the offensive rebound and he gets the put back to go.
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67-71
WE ARE BACK IN PLAY FROM DENVER!!!
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Jokic has 18 points but just 3 assists tonight. He hasn't been able to play his game and that's why the Nuggets only lead by four at half.
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It was a slow start for the Nuggets, especially on the defensive end where they gave up 40 points in the first quarter, but Russell Westbrook came off the bench and added some energy. He's got 15 points and is 3/3 from downtown.
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Aaron Gordon is back in action after missing the last few games and he got right to work. He had 12 points in the first half, but so much of what he does doesn't show up on the scoreboard.
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Dalton Knecht got the start and he hasn't disappointed. He's got 15 points on6/12 shooting but it was all Austin Reaves in that first half. He's got 22 points 10 assists and is five rebounds away from a triple double.
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With the Lakers missing six guys tonight, including LeBron and Luka it's going to be up to everyone else to even make this a contest. So far so good Bronny James got some extended minutes and had 5 points off the bench.
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67-71
WE ARE HEADING TO THE HALFTIME BREAK!!!!
The shorthanded Lakers with no Luka or LeBron are hanging in there from Denver!!!
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67-71
Reaves cans another three pointer and he has been doing everything for the Lakers in this first half.
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64-71
Jokic to the line and he hits both FTs after the foul on Knecht.
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64-69
Reaves to the bucket and he lays it up and in again.
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62-69
Jokic to the line after the foul on Morris and he hits one of two FTs.
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61-66
Reaves got fouled by JOokic and he hit both FTs.
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59-68
Braun to the rack and Westbrook found him for the lay up.
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62-66
Knecht answers back with a three ball of is own!!
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56-66
Westbrook in the corner for three and the lead is 10!!!
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56-63
Gordon to the line after the foul on Reaves and he hits both FTs.
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56-61
Timeout Lakers with under 3:00 to go in the first half.
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56-61
Milton down the lane and he gets the floater to fall.
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54-61
Gordon to the line after the foul on Knecht and he hits both FTs.
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54-59
Jokic to the line after the foul on Vanderbilt and he hits both FTs.
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54-57
Vanderbilt running the break and he finds Knecht who stretches for the transition jam.
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52-57
Westbrook running the break and he gets the finger roll to drop on the break.
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52-55
Vanderbilt to the line after the foul on Porter Jr. and he hits one of two.
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51-55
Braun drives into traffic and he gets the roll on the runner.
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51-53
Morris off the dribble and he gets the jump hook to go.
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49-53
Jokic was fouled on the three point attempt and he hits all three FTs after the foul on Goodwin.
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49-50
Jokic cherry picking and he lobs it up for Porter Jr. for the ally oop slam.
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49-48
Backdoor cut from Jokic and Westbrook found him for the slam.
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49-46
Knecht with another long ball and he strings it!!!
Timeout Nuggets with 6:22 to go in the first half.
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46-46
Great ball movement leads to Westbrook finding Braun on for the jam on the baseline.
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46-44
Reaves to the line and he hits both FTs after the foul on MPJ
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44-44
Westbrook finds Nnaji streaking down the baseline and found him for the jam.
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44-42
Murray to the FT line and he hits both FTs after the foul on Koloko.
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44-40
Milton in traffic down low and he gets the friendly roll on the floater.
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42-40
Murray kicks it over to Westbrook and he drills the triple try.
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42-37
Morris off the dribble and he hits the FT line jumper.
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40-37
Murray on the pull up and he drills the three ball from the wing.
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40-34
Porter Jr. to the line and he hits both FTs. Len just picked up his third foul already. Not good news for a banged up Lakers team.
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40-32
WE ARE AT THE END OF THE FIRST QUARTER FROM DENVER!!
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40-32
Watson to the line and he hits one of two after the foul on Len.
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40-31
Westbrook hits a mid range jumper off the pull up.
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40-29
Reaves strings a three ball from the top of the key and the Lakers put up 40 points in the first quarter!!!
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37-29
Bronny James drills the triple try and gets a nice cheer from the Denver crowd.
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34-29
Westbrook answers back with a three ball of his own from the corner!!!
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34-26
Milton in the corner and he gets a very friendly roll from the three point line.
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31-26
Jokic with the fader in the lane and he hits the shot and gets the foul! FT is no good.
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31-24
Bronny James into the game and to the FT line and he hits both FTs.
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29-24
Jokic spots up from the FT line and hits the mid range bucket.
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29-22
Milton running the break and he lays it up and in.
Timeout DEN with 2:40 to go in the 1st quarter.
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27-22
Koloko with back to back buckets after getting another lay up to go.
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25-22
Westbrook finds Braun down low and he lays it up and in.
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25-20
Morris fakes the shot and releases Koloko to the bucket for the open lay up.
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23-20
Reaves soars to the iron for the lay up on the right side of the paint.
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21-20
Jokic comes up with the steal, finds Braun on the break and he lobs it up for Westbrook who slams it home for the alley oop slam!
Timeout Lakers with 4:30 to go in the 1st quarter.
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21-18
Braun in the corner off the Jokic kick out and he drills the three!
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21-15
Knecht down the lane and he gets the finger roll to go.
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19-15
Gordon to the line and he hits both FTs after the foul on Koloko.
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19-13
Knecht on the back door cut and Reaves found him for the lay up on the baseline.
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17-13
Jokic with the offensive rebound and put back.
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17-11
Spot up three ball from Knechet and he drills it from the wing!
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14-11
Reaves with a mid range jumper from the elbow off the dribble.
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12-11
Gordon to the line and he hits one of two FTs.
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12-10
Len with a transition take foul and Murray hits the FT.
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12-9
Jokic on the board for the first time with a lay up down low.
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12-7
Vanderbilt puts his head down and finishes with a flush off a drive down the left side.
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10-7
Murray lobs it up and finds Gordon soaring through the air for the alley oop.
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10-5
Goodwin with the long offensive board and he hits the floater down the lane.
Early timeout from Denver four minutes into this game.
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8-5
Gordon in the corner and he strings the three ball
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8-2
Vanderbilt in the corner for three and the Lakers are off to a quick start!
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5-2
Reaves through the lane and he lays it up and in and he's got a quick 5.
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3-2
Reaves with the three ball and he is going to have to have a huge game tonight without LA's two biggest stars.
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0-2
Murray to the cup and he lays it up and in for the first bucket of the game.
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0-0
WE ARE UNDERWAY FROM DENVER!!!
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This just in:
Luka Doncic is out tonight! He was not expected to sit but he was a late scratch and will not play tonight so the Lakers will be incredibly short handed against the Nuggets.
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NBA
No days off: This is why Nikola Jokic hardly ever sits out due to injury
Jokic not sitting tonight
With the state of the NBA as it is right now, seeing Nikola Jokic come out and play around 40 minutes a game every night is a refreshing thing. A lot of players don’t like to play back to backs or will take nights off due to load management, but not Nikola. He was listed as probable tonight, but hewants to play each and every game, but there is a reason behind just his passion for playing and his want to help his team. He plays because he’d much rather put in 40 minutes of the court instead of doing this.
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NBA
“The permanent sub” OKC Thunder’s failed plan to slow down Nikola Jokic
The permanent sub
The Oklahoma City Thunder tried a new tactic in their game against the Nuggets on Monday night. Knowing that Jokic likes to in bound the ball quickly and attempt to catch the defense out of position, they put what Mark Daigneault calls a “permanent sub” at the scorers table. Rookie Dillon Jones acted as if he was going to check into the game during the first half of Monday’s game. The rook never actually checked into the game, but the refs would delay to see if he was going to check into the game or not.
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LeBron out for a little while longer
LeBron James went down with a groin injury in the fourth quarter of the Lakers game against the Celtics on Saturday night. He was ruled out for a week to two weeks which means he could be back as early as Saturday’s game against the Suns, or not until the Lakers play Orlando on March 24th. The Lakers have a ton of massive games from now until the end of the year, but can’t rush LeBron back because the most important thing for them is to have him healthy for a playoff push in April and into May.
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Western Conference standings
Taking a look at the standing with less than a month to go in the regular season we see the Thunder way on top of the rest of the teams in the West. Twelve games behind them sit the Memphis Grizzlies and the Denver Nuggets with Memphis on top at the moment because of their head to head tie breaker. A game behind the Grizz and the Nugs sit the Lakers who are just trying to keep their heads above water until LeBron gets healthy. The Lakers rattled off eight straight wins once LeBron and Luka found their groove but right now it’s all on Luka to carry the Lakers until the all-time leading scorer gets healthy.
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Star watch: Nuggets
Nikola Jokic simply can’t be stopped. He may not win the MVP, but his coach says he should be the clear favorite. The big Serbian is averaging a triple double, while scoring a career high 29 points a game. He is at his best when he is scoring less and doing a little bit more of everything else. Last game he had just 4 assists and as a result, the Nuggets scored just 95 points. Coach Mike Malone said “I put Player A and Player B on paper … the guy that was averaging a triple-double, the guy that is top-three in the three major statistical categories, things that no one has ever done, he wins the MVP 10 times out of 10. And if you don’t think so, I think you guys are all bulls--ting."
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Star watch: Lakers
Let’s not kid ourselves. With no LeBron James, Luka Doncic is going to have to be even more incredible than he has been since coming to LA if the Lakers are going to win games. He had a triple double against Brooklyn in the loss to the Nets but shot just 8/26 that night. He had 45 points and shot 14/27 from the field against Milwaukee but had six turnovers, which accounted for a third of LA’s give aways. Without LeBron, and Jaxson Hayes still sidelined Luka knows he is going to have to carry most of the burden but may have to keep his mistakes to a minimum without a couple of the teams top defenders out with injury.
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Last game: Nuggets
After coming up with maybe their biggest win of the season on Monday night in OKC, the Nuggets returned home to take on Anthony Edwards and the Minnesota Timberwolves from Ball Arena. It was the matchup that gave the Nuggets all sorts of problems last year in the playoffs and Minnesota was able to doit again on Wednesday night. It was a wire-to-wire road win for the T’Wolves who got 29 points from Edwards and 25 from Julius Randle. The Nuggets struggled from the three point line which made it hard to make a comeback on the T’Wolves despite Nikola Jokic scoring 34 points and grabbing 8 assists.
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Last game: Lakers
The Lakers went to Milwaukee for their third game of a four game road trip and the Bucks handled them from start to finish. The Lakers led by a couple points in the first few minutes of the game, but after that it was Giannis Antetokoumpo and Damian Lillard who took control of the game. They built up a 23 point second half lead against and cruised to victory despite 45 points from Luka Doncic and another 28 from Austin Reaves. Four Bucks players had 20+ points, including Giannis who put down 24, 12 and 9 assists while Damian Lillard had 22 and 10 assists in the 126-106 win.
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We are live from Ball Arena
Hello everyone and welcome to the Mile High City where the Denver Nuggets are looking after losing to the Minnesota Timberwolves last game, and have lost two of their last three. They have had a rough schedule over the last week, playing the conference leading Oklahoma City Thunder twice and the rising Minnesota Timberwolves on Wednesday night. They are looking to turn things around tonight against a Lakers team that has lost three straight games, and will be with out LeBron James for what could turn out to be another week. Both teams need a win to break out of their rough patch and more importantly to keep pace with with the Memphis Grizzlies who are currently in the second spot in the West.
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Lakers vs. Nuggets live
Two teams fighting for the second spot in the West. Two teams led by a couple of the best players in the game. One massive matchup tonight from Denver. It’s Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets hosting Luka Doncic and the Los Angeles Lakers from Ball Arena and AS English will be with you all night providing live coverage, stats, highlights and analysis of tonight’s match up that could determine who finished second in the Western Conference.
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