Game ID: 42300153
Denver Nuggets @ Los Angeles Lakers
Thursday, April 25, 2024 at 10:00 PM ET
Crypto.com Arena, Los Angeles, CA
Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Final
LAL 33 20 22 30 105DEN 23 26 34 29 112
DEN @ LAL ScoutingDEN @ LAL Scouting
Welcome to the scouting desk. The coffee is cold, the film is play-by-play, and somebody has to explain what happened.
Every game has a hinge — a stretch where it was decided, usually while everyone was watching something else. Start where the evidence lives: the Lineups' face-offs say which five actually won their minutes; the Possessions ledger says who ran ahead of the night's own pace; the Shot Chart says where the points really came from, which is rarely where the highlights were. When all three agree, that is the story. When they don't — that is why this desk has a chair.
LAL availability going into 4/12 · 2 days' restOUT Vanderbilt missed 30 since 2/03, out tonight
OUT Wood missed 24 since 2/22, out tonight
BACK Reddish back 4/07 after 3, 12 min since (57% of 20)
NEW Hayes 12 to 20 min over the last 5
LAL availability going into 4/14 · 1 day's restOUT Vanderbilt missed 31 since 2/03, out tonight
OUT Wood missed 25 since 2/22, out tonight
BACK Reddish back 4/07 after 3, 12 min since (57% of 20)
NEW Hayes 12 to 18 min over the last 5
LAL availability going into 4/20 · 5 days' restOUT Reddish missed 2 since 4/12, not on tonight's roster
OUT Vanderbilt missed 32 since 2/03, out tonight
OUT Wood missed 26 since 2/22, out tonight
NEW Hayes 12 to 18 min over the last 5
LAL availability going into 4/22 · 1 day's restOUT Vanderbilt missed 33 since 2/03, out tonight
OUT Wood missed 27 since 2/22, out tonight
BACK Reddish back 4/07 after 3, 12 min since (57% of 20)
NEW Russell 33 to 38 min over the last 5
NEW Hachimura 27 to 32 min over the last 5
LAL availability going into 4/25 · 2 days' restOUT Vanderbilt missed 34 since 2/03, out tonight
OUT Wood missed 28 since 2/22, out tonight
OUT Christie missed 2 since 4/20, out tonight
NEW Russell 33 to 38 min over the last 5
NEW Hachimura 27 to 33 min over the last 5
LAL availability going into 4/27 · 1 day's restOUT Vanderbilt missed 35 since 2/03, out tonight
OUT Wood missed 29 since 2/22, out tonight
OUT Christie missed 3 since 4/20, out tonight
LAL availability going into 4/29 · 1 day's restOUT Vanderbilt missed 36 since 2/03, out tonight
OUT Wood missed 30 since 2/22, out tonight
OUT Christie missed 4 since 4/20, out tonight
DEN availability going into 4/12 · 1 day's restOUT Jordan missed 3 since 4/06, out tonight
BACK Murray back 4/06 after 7, 25 min since (77% of 33)
BACK Gordon back 4/10 after 2, 28 min since (87% of 32)
NEW Braun 20 to 28 min over the last 5
NEW Watson 18 to 24 min over the last 5
DEN availability going into 4/14 · 1 day's restOUT Jordan missed 4 since 4/06, out tonight
BACK Murray back 4/06 after 7, 26 min since (80% of 33)
BACK Gordon back 4/10 after 2, 28 min since (88% of 32)
NEW Braun 20 to 27 min over the last 5
NEW Watson 18 to 24 min over the last 5
DEN availability going into 4/20 · 5 days' restOUT Jordan missed 5 since 4/06, returns tonight: 9 min (80% of 11)
BACK Murray back 4/06 after 7, 26 min since (79% of 33)
BACK Gordon back 4/10 after 2, 28 min since (86% of 32)
NEW Braun 20 to 26 min over the last 5
NEW Watson 18 to 24 min over the last 5
DEN availability going into 4/22 · 1 day's restBACK Gordon back 4/10 after 2, 29 min since (89% of 32)
BACK Jordan back 4/20 after 5, 9 min since (80% of 11)
DEN availability going into 4/25 · 2 days' restOUT Strawther missed 2 since 4/20, out tonight
BACK Gordon back 4/10 after 2, 31 min since (96% of 32)
BACK Jordan back 4/20 after 5, 9 min since (80% of 11)
DEN availability going into 4/27 · 1 day's restOUT Jordan missed 2 since 4/22, out tonight
OUT Strawther missed 3 since 4/20, out tonight
DEN availability going into 4/29 · 1 day's restOUT Jordan missed 3 since 4/22, out tonight
OUT Strawther missed 4 since 4/20, out tonight
DEN availability going into 5/04 · 4 days' restOUT Jordan missed 4 since 4/22, out tonight
OUT Strawther missed 5 since 4/20, out tonight
NEW Murray 33 to 40 min over the last 5
NEW Gordon 32 to 40 min over the last 5
NEW Porter Jr. 32 to 39 min over the last 5
DEN availability going into 5/06 · 1 day's restOUT Jordan missed 5 since 4/22, out tonight
OUT Strawther missed 6 since 4/20, returns tonight: 4 min (33% of 11)
NEW Jokić 35 to 41 min over the last 5
NEW Murray 33 to 39 min over the last 5
NEW Gordon 32 to 40 min over the last 5
NEW Porter Jr. 32 to 40 min over the last 5
I Know — the desk, before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
The Lakers come in 2-3 over their last five, scoring 114 a night and allowing 115, shooting 50 percent and 36 from three, 22 free throws a game; Davis at 32 and James at 30 a game. They have lost the glass by 4 a night. Without Vanderbilt (34 straight), Wood (28 straight). 2 days' rest. Denver comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 115 a night and allowing 108, shooting 49 percent and 34 from three, 16 free throws a game; Jokić at 27 and Murray at 24 a game. That is 3 straight wins. It has won the glass by 4 a night. 2 days' rest.
So: The Lakers win, and the game turns on the glass, where Denver has been plus-4 a night and the Lakers minus-4 and the defense, Denver allowing 108 a night to the Lakers' 115. Call it the Lakers 115, Denver 114, Denver keeping it close.
4/12 @ MEM 123-120 — LAL notes
LAL won 123-120. LAL shot 52% (42 of 81) to MEM's 45%, 13 of 37 from three, and went to the line 34 times to MEM's 21 — 26 points from the stripe to their 17. LAL turned it over 19 times to MEM's 13, and MEM turned those into 14 steals. James led with 37 (13 of 20, 3 of 7 from three, 8 of 11 at the line); Davis added 36, Hachimura 14. The hinge was Q1, 34-26: from level to 8 ahead. Vincent was the night's best plus/minus at +27.
4/14 @ NOP 124-108 — LAL notes
LAL won 124-108. LAL shot 55% (48 of 87) to NOP's 48%, 11 of 29 from three. LAL turned it over 14 times to NOP's 19. Davis led with 30 (13 of 17); James added 28, Reaves 20. The hinge was Q2, 40-29: a lead of 6 became 17, and the lead reached 32. Russell was the night's best plus/minus at +24.
4/20 @ DEN 103-114 — LAL notes
LAL lost 103-114. LAL shot 49% (39 of 79) to DEN's 46%, 8 of 29 from three, and went to the line 19 times to DEN's 6 — 17 points from the stripe to their 5. LAL turned it over 12 times to DEN's 4. Davis led with 32 (12 of 23, 0 of 4 from three, 8 of 9 at the line); James added 27, Russell 13. Q1 was theirs, 33-25, but the other 3 periods went 89-70 against them. They led by as many as 12. Davis's -12 in 44 minutes was the worst on the floor.
4/22 @ DEN 99-101 — LAL notes
LAL lost 99-101. LAL shot 49% (38 of 78) to DEN's 44%, 13 of 30 from three. LAL turned it over 14 times to DEN's 9. Davis led with 32 (14 of 19); James added 26, Russell 23. Q2 was theirs, 31-20, but the other 3 periods went 81-68 against them. They led by as many as 20. Dinwiddie's -9 in 10 minutes was the worst on the floor.
4/25 vs DEN 105-112 — LAL notes
LAL lost 105-112. LAL shot 49% (44 of 90) to DEN's 49%, 5 of 27 from three. LAL turned it over 7 times to DEN's 13. The glass went 38-51 against them. Davis led with 33 (14 of 23, 5 of 7 at the line); James added 26, Reaves 22. Q1 was theirs, 33-23, but the other 3 periods went 89-72 against them. They led by as many as 12. Hachimura's -12 in 28 minutes was the worst on the floor.
4/27 vs DEN — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
The Lakers come in 2-3 over their last five, scoring 111 a night and allowing 111, shooting 51 percent and 33 from three, 20 free throws a game; Davis at 33 and James at 29 a game. That is 3 straight losses. They have lost the glass by 6 a night. Without Vanderbilt (35 straight), Wood (29 straight). One day's rest. Denver comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 115 a night and allowing 108, shooting 48 percent and 30 from three, 16 free throws a game; Jokić at 24 and Murray at 24 a game. That is 4 straight wins. It has won the glass by 5 a night. One day's rest.
So: The Lakers win, and the game turns on the glass, where Denver has been plus-5 a night and the Lakers minus-6 and the turnovers, the Lakers giving it away 13 times a game to Denver's 10. Call it the Lakers 114, Denver 113, Denver keeping it close.
4/29 @ DEN — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Denver comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 112 a night and allowing 107, shooting 47 percent and 29 from three, 19 free throws a game; Jokić at 26 and Murray at 21 a game. It has won the glass by 7 a night. One day's rest. The Lakers come in 2-3 over their last five, scoring 110 a night and allowing 109, shooting 51 percent and 32 from three, 17 free throws a game; Davis at 30 and James at 27 a game. They have lost the glass by 5 a night. Without Vanderbilt (36 straight), Wood (30 straight). One day's rest.
So: Denver wins, and the game turns on the glass, where Denver has been plus-7 a night and the Lakers minus-5. Call it Denver 114, the Lakers 110, the Lakers keeping it close.
4/12 @ SAS 120-121 — DEN notes
DEN lost 120-121. DEN took 12 more shots (97 to 85), but shot 51% to SAS's 53%, 13 of 36 from three, and got to the line just 10 times against 19 fouls committed. DEN turned it over 7 times to SAS's 18. The glass went 33-49 against them. Murray led with 35 (14 of 26, 5 of 11 from three); Jokić added 22, Porter Jr. 14. Q2 was theirs, 37-18, turning a 1-point deficit into a 18-point lead, but the other 3 periods went 103-83 against them. They led by as many as 23.
4/14 @ MEM 126-111 — DEN notes
DEN won 126-111. DEN shot 52% (46 of 89) to MEM's 45%, 12 of 36 from three, and went to the line 26 times to MEM's 18 — 22 points from the stripe to their 13. The glass went 54-43 for them. Murray led with 21 (7 of 14, 3 of 7 from three); Braun added 19, Jokić 15. The hinge was Q2, 37-28: a lead of 3 became 12, and the lead reached 26. Porter Jr. was the night's best plus/minus at +27.
4/20 vs LAL 114-103 — DEN notes
DEN won 114-103. DEN shot 46% (47 of 102) to LAL's 49%, 15 of 42 from three, and got to the line 6 times to LAL's 19. DEN turned it over 4 times to LAL's 12. Jokić led with 32 (15 of 23, 1 of 3 from three); Murray added 22, Porter Jr. 19. The hinge was Q3, 32-18: DEN came in trailing by 3 and left it ahead by 11, and the lead reached 15. DEN trailed 57-60 at the half and won the second half 57-43. Gordon was the night's best plus/minus at +20.
4/22 vs LAL 101-99 — DEN notes
DEN won 101-99. DEN shot 44% (39 of 88) to LAL's 49%, 8 of 34 from three. DEN turned it over 9 times to LAL's 14. Jokić led with 27 (9 of 16, 2 of 4 from three, 7 of 7 at the line); Porter Jr. added 22, Murray 20. The hinge was Q4, 32-20: DEN came in trailing by 10 and left it ahead by 2. DEN trailed 44-59 at the half and won the second half 57-40. Watson was the night's best plus/minus at +11.
4/25 @ LAL 112-105 — DEN notes
DEN won 112-105. DEN shot 49% (44 of 90) to LAL's 49%, 5 of 28 from three. DEN turned it over 13 times to LAL's 7, and LAL turned those into 8 steals. The glass went 51-38 for them. Gordon led with 29 (12 of 18, 5 of 6 at the line); Jokić added 24, Murray 22. The hinge was Q3, 34-22: DEN came in trailing by 4 and left it ahead by 8, and the lead reached 15. DEN trailed 49-53 at the half and won the second half 63-52. Watson was the night's best plus/minus at +9.
4/27 @ LAL — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
The Lakers come in 2-3 over their last five, scoring 111 a night and allowing 111, shooting 51 percent and 33 from three, 20 free throws a game; Davis at 33 and James at 29 a game. That is 3 straight losses. They have lost the glass by 6 a night. Without Vanderbilt (35 straight), Wood (29 straight). One day's rest. Denver comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 115 a night and allowing 108, shooting 48 percent and 30 from three, 16 free throws a game; Jokić at 24 and Murray at 24 a game. That is 4 straight wins. It has won the glass by 5 a night. One day's rest.
So: The Lakers win, and the game turns on the glass, where Denver has been plus-5 a night and the Lakers minus-6 and the turnovers, the Lakers giving it away 13 times a game to Denver's 10. Call it the Lakers 114, Denver 113, Denver keeping it close.
4/29 vs LAL — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Denver comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 112 a night and allowing 107, shooting 47 percent and 29 from three, 19 free throws a game; Jokić at 26 and Murray at 21 a game. It has won the glass by 7 a night. One day's rest. The Lakers come in 2-3 over their last five, scoring 110 a night and allowing 109, shooting 51 percent and 32 from three, 17 free throws a game; Davis at 30 and James at 27 a game. They have lost the glass by 5 a night. Without Vanderbilt (36 straight), Wood (30 straight). One day's rest.
So: Denver wins, and the game turns on the glass, where Denver has been plus-7 a night and the Lakers minus-5. Call it Denver 114, the Lakers 110, the Lakers keeping it close.
5/04 vs MIN — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Denver comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 109 a night and allowing 106, shooting 46 percent and 31 from three, 16 free throws a game; Jokić at 28 and Murray at 24 a game. It has won the glass by 5 a night. 4 days' rest. Minnesota comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 116 a night and allowing 108, shooting 48 percent and 36 from three, 29 free throws a game; Edwards at 27 and Towns at 17 a game. That is 4 straight wins. It has won the glass by 12 a night. 5 days' rest.
So: Denver wins, and the game turns on the line, where Minnesota takes 29 free throws a game to Denver's 16 and the glass, where Minnesota has been plus-12 a night and Denver plus-5. Call it Denver 111, Minnesota 109, Minnesota keeping it close.
5/06 vs MIN — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Denver comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 106 a night and allowing 107, shooting 46 percent and 32 from three, 19 free throws a game; Jokić at 28 and Porter Jr. at 23 a game. One day's rest. Minnesota comes in 5-0 over its last five, scoring 116 a night and allowing 102, shooting 49 percent and 37 from three, 25 free throws a game; Edwards at 33 and Towns at 19 a game. That is 5 straight wins. It has won the glass by 13 a night. One day's rest.
So: Minnesota wins, on the road, and the game turns on the glass, where Minnesota has been plus-13 a night and Denver plus-2 and the arc, Minnesota at 37 percent from three to Denver's 32. Call it Minnesota 110, Denver 108, Denver keeping it close.
Who is who
the initials in the Players column
LALAD A. Davis
AR A. Reaves
DR D. Russell
GV G. Vincent
LJ L. James
RH R. Hachimura
SD S. Dinwiddie
TP T. Prince
DENAG A. Gordon
CB C. Braun
JH J. Holiday
JM J. Murray
JO Jokic
KC K. Caldwell-Pope
MP M. Porter Jr.
NJ N. Jokić
PW P. Watson
RJ R. Jackson
LAL/DEN the team itself, not a player
-- the feed named nobody
What
What happened
the codes in the Events column
M2 / M3 made 2 / made 3
X2 / X3 missed 2 / missed 3
FT / X1 free throw made / missed
AST assist
OR / DR offensive / defensive rebound
STL steal
BLK block
TO turnover
FL foul
OF offensive foul — ends the possession
VIOL violation
JUMP jump ball
TM timeout
IR instant replay
HE heave at the buzzer, filed to the team
END the clock ran out, ball in hand
Where
Where a shot came from
the middle field of M3.LW.25
RM at the rim inside 4 ft
RC right corner
RW right wing
SO straight on
LW left wing
LC left corner
M3.LW.25 made 3, left wing, 25 ft
X2.RM.01 missed 2, at the rim, 1 ft
When
When it happened
the Offset column
one number per event, in the Events order:
whole seconds from the start of the
possession to that event
Events FL X3.RC.23 OR M2.RM.01
Offset 0 18 22 24
the foul opens the possession at 0s;
the putback ends it at 24s, which is
the possession's own Dur
Gordon, Jokic lead the Nuggets to the brink of a sweep with a 112-105 win over the Lakers in Game 3
LOS ANGELES -- — With one championship ring and a tenacious veteran core, the Denver Nuggets are a daunting matchup for any opponent in the NBA.
They're clearly a particular nightmare for LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers , who are one game away from an early summer after Denver stretched its winning streak in this lopsided rivalry to a whopping 11 games.
Aaron Gordon had a playoff career-high 29 points and 15 rebounds, Nikola Jokic added 24 points, 15 rebounds and nine assists, and the Nuggets moved to the brink of the second round with a 112-105 victory over the Lakers in Game 3 of their first-round series Thursday night.
Jamal Murray scored 22 points to help the defending NBA champion Nuggets win their seventh straight playoff meeting with James and the Lakers in dominating style. Denver has rallied from a double-digit deficit in all three games, and the Nuggets went out of their way after Game 3 to praise an opponent they've utterly dominated recently.
“I think every game is tougher and tougher,” Jokic said. “They were up 20 in Denver, they were up 12 today in the first half, but I think it’s really hard to play against the same team over and over again. ... That’s a really tough team, and every game is really interesting and tough to win. Every game we’re playing catch-up, and they’re really talented. It’s really hard to close a team out.”
Michael Porter Jr . added 20 points for Denver, which took control in the third quarter and cruised through the final minutes to its fifth straight road win over Los Angeles, starting with its sweep of last season's Western Conference finals .
“It’s fun to win games,” Porter said. “I don’t think anybody besides the media looks at the 11 (straight victories), because it’s hard. It’s not easy to beat this team. Last game, coming back from 20 points, we had to scratch and claw. So it’s not easy. But of course we like winning, and the more times we can win the better.”
Game 4 is Saturday night in Los Angeles. No NBA team has ever rallied from an 0-3 playoff deficit.
Anthony Davis had 33 points and 15 rebounds, and James added 26 points and nine assists for the Lakers, who haven't beaten the Nuggets since Dec. 16, 2022 — and have rarely looked capable of ending that streak.
“You come out with the mindset, ‘Let’s get one, force a Game 5, and then we go from there,’” James said. “As long as you still have life, then you obviously have belief. I just think you play ’til the wheels fall off. That’s what it’s always about for me. That’s a mindset, and I know (Davis) feels the same way.”
Austin Reaves scored 22 points for Los Angeles, which surged into the postseason with largely outstanding play since the holidays, capped by an impressive play-in win over New Orleans to snatch the seventh seed. The Lakers had won 12 of 15 heading into this series — but now they're one loss away from failing to win a playoff round for the third time in four years since their 2020 NBA title.
“They have a championship confidence,” Lakers coach Darvin Ham said about the Nuggets. “That starting group has been together for a long time. Their net rating is off the charts as a starting group. They had guys step up and make plays.”
Davis and James were outstanding once again, but they can't do it alone. The Lakers missed 15 of their first 16 3-point attempts in Game 3, going nearly 34 minutes between 3-point buckets.
D’Angelo Russell went scoreless in 24 minutes of play for the Lakers, who got only two assists out of their inconsistent third option on offense. Russell missed all seven of his shots, including six 3-point attempts.
Meanwhile, Gordon had the highest-scoring playoff game of his 10 NBA seasons, highlighted by 10 points in the third quarter while Denver took control. Jokic also made nine of his 13 shots and barely missed his 17th career postseason triple-double.
The second-seeded Nuggets began their title defense with two wins in Denver , pulling away late in Game 1 before snatching Game 2 with a furious comeback capped by Murray’s winning jumper at the buzzer.
After blowing a 20-point lead in the second half of Game 2, the seventh-seeded Lakers were left feeling frustrated, outmanned — and occasionally confused, according to Davis, who said the Lakers sometimes don’t know what they’re doing when faced with Denver’s offensive versatility.
None of those problems had been alleviated in Game 3, and now the Lakers are one loss away from the end of James' remarkable 21st NBA season. Los Angeles hadn't played a home game in 16 days, and it has won just once at home since March 24.
“Just last season, I was up 3-0 and ended up in a Game 7,” said Lakers guard Gabe Vincent , who played for the Miami Heat last season when they nearly blew a 3-0 lead on Boston. “Crazier things have happened.”
But the Nuggets went 16-4 in last season’s playoffs, and they appear capable of another steamroll through the postseason after comfortably handling the talented Lakers through three games.
Russell's disappearing act was compounded by another quiet game from starter Rui Hachimura , who had only five points while taking four shots in 28 minutes.
Denver turned a small halftime deficit into a 10-point lead with a 24-10 run to start the second half led by Gordon and Murray, who combined for 19 points in the third quarter. The Lakers never got closer than eight points down the stretch in the fourth quarter.
While the Lakers' fans left the building in the final minutes, a small group in the Lakers' end chanted “Fire Darvin!”