Game 3 of the best of 7 series between the Denver Nuggets and Los Angeles Lakers will take place on Thursday. The Denver Nuggets are up 2-0 in the series following back to back thrilling wins at home. The Lakers will look to get back into the series with the first of back to back home games.
The Denver Nuggets are the defending NBA Champions. The Nuggets took down the Heat a season ago in the NBA Finals. Before they got to the Heat, they beat the Lakers in the Western Conference Finals. Denver went 57-25 during the regular season, which was tied with Oklahoma City for the best record.
For the Lakers, after beating the Pelicans on the road in the play-in game, they were assigned a first round matchup with the Nuggets. Los Angeles took road losses in the first two, but Game 2 was tight, which gives them home back at home.
The Denver Nuggets are -1.5 on the road at the Lakers on Thursday. The total is 216.5.
Champions Stay Hot
It was another signature moment for Jamal Murray, as he knocked down the winning shot as the time expired in the Game two win. He finished with 20 points and 5 assists in the game. Nikola Jokic was brilliant, as he scored 27 points, ripped down 20 rebounds and dished out 10 assists in the game.
Game one, all five Nuggets starters scored double digits in the game. Jokic went for 32 and 12 in that game. The Nuggets as a team are scoring 115 points per game. Denver is the fourth best shooting team in the league, at just shy of 50%. Denver is 7th in rebounding, with 44.4 per game.
The Nuggets hope to make this series quick and painless and prepare for the second round. The winner of this series will get the winner of the Minnesota Timberwolves and Phoenix Suns.
Big Games for Davis
Anthony Davis scored a team high 32 points, and ripped down 11 rebounds, but the story was him having his hand up and being scored on in the final possession of the game. Now, the Lakers will need to bounce back quickly to get back in the series. LeBron James added 26 points and 12 assists in the game.
In Game one, the Lakers used 32 from Davis and 27 from James. De’Angelo Russell, Rui Hachimura and Austin Reaves are the other three starters for the Lakers. The Lakers as a team are scoring 118 points per game. Los Angeles was the second best shooting team, at just shy of 50%.
Los Angeles was 8th in three point percentage, and averaged making nearly 12 per game. Los Angeles down the final stretch of the regular season went 5-2, before the win over the Pelicans.
Lakers Get First Win of Series
The Los Angeles Lakers have to win this game to have any chance in this series. LeBron James and Anthony Davis have to come back strong and not make excuses and take this game. We think the Lakers get it done.
Despite being underdogs at home, we like the Lakers to top the Nuggets. Our final bet for this game is the Los Angeles Lakers +105 on the moneyline over the Denver Nuggets on Thursday!
