It was the best of games, it was the worst of games. It was peak Murray, it was no Murray. It was good Watson, it was bad Watson. It was Spencer Jones’ highlight reel, it was Drew Timme’s highlight reel. It was can’t miss, it was can’t make. It was a signature win, it was a gut-wrenching loss.
Here’s how the tale of two halves unfolded.
1st Quarter
The Nuggets got off to probably their best start of the season. Jalen Pickett opened the scoring with a three, followed by a Spencer Jones twister from the corner. Murray’s turnaround jumper gave the Nuggets a quick 8-2 lead on just the third possession. Watson joined in with the Nuggets third triple, matched by Mal making a fourth in the opening three minutes. The Nuggets’ relentless shot-making finally cooled briefly as PWat missed a pair of drives and Gordon failed to join the other starters with a step-back from beyond the arc. After Luka Dončić scored his ninth point of the first, Jalen picked LeBron’s pocket, leading to another Spencer three from the corner and an 18-11 lead for the good guys at the halfway mark of the first.
Luka kept the Lakers in check with his second three (12 of the Lakers’ 14) but was immediately matched by Jamal’s second trey, prompting a Lakers’ timeout as the Nuggets lead grew to 21-14. Luka’s 14th was then topped by Jones’ third from deep (7/9 for the team). After Mal and Hayes traded free throws, Jones hit his fourth(!) three of the quarter. Watson’s second triple and another trip to the line for Murray on a post-up gave the Nuggets a 35-22 with time left in a scoring clinic of a first quarter. LeBron strung a couple together to close it out, though, getting the Lakers to within 9.
2nd Quarter
As expected, Los Angeles opened the second with a long lineup featuring two-way big Drew Timme, who they started experimenting with over the weekend. The former Gonzaga star (and “sexual tyrannosaurus”) hit his first three and a hook in the paint, shrinking the Nuggets’ lead to four. LeBron and Timme hit back-to-back shots, threatening to tie the game before Hardaway drew a three-point foul (2/3). An aggressive block by Nnaji then led to a Brown floater, as the intensity of the defense on both sides ticked up. Pickett’s free-throw jumper extended the Nuggets lead back to eight, but THJ missed a three before matching a Lakers’ bucket to maintain the lead, as Luka, AG, and Jones checked back into the game. Another Bruce floater in the lane extended the Nuggets’ lead back to 10, capping off a 10-2 run.
Jamal then made a statement as he and Luka went at it to close out the quarter. Dončić hit a pair then found Gabe Vincent in transition for a corner three. Murray responded with two drives at Luka, protecting the Nuggets’ lead while guarding him well on the other end. After another Dončić assist and jumper over THJ, Murray hit a dagger step-back three as the shot clock expired, giving him 22 points with 1:19 left in the half. Mal then capped off a second-quarter flurry, beginning with one of the best passes of the season—a perfectly timed and placed lob to AG for a poster alley-opp. The Nuggets’ soon-to-be All-Star point guard followed one dime with another, an assist to Watson for three before hitting a ~60′ heave as time expired, giving the Nuggets their largest lead (71-57) fueled by his 26 points and 7 assists in a head-to-head matchup against a hot-shooting MVP candidate with 23 of his own.
3rd Quarter
The Nuggets started the third trying hard to pick up where they left off. Watson was aggressive, giving the Nuggets their largest lead of the game at 77-62. After an AG three, the Lakers picked up their pace and intensity. Two dunks in a row prompted an Adelman timeout. Then Luka went to work, hitting a jumper in the lane and picking off a Watson pass leading to a three in transition. A forced three from Watson was then blocked, leading to another Dončić dime and easy score for the Lakers. LaRavia’s running floater cut the Nuggets’ lead to 80-77 as the Lakers reeled off a 13-0 run. Tim Hardaway Jr. finally stopped the bleeding, and Murray found AG for a driving dunk.
Luka continued to cook, though, scoring his 33rd point of the game. The Nuggets’ soon-to-be-on-a-full-contract Spencer Jones converted on two drives in the lane, though, causing a Lakers’ timeout, during which Redick went back to the big-baller lineup with Timme and Vanderbilt, leading to a James three and layup, dwindling the Nuggets’ lead to 88-86 as the quarter came to an end.
4th Quarter
Murray and Dončić sat to start the fourth with LJ anchoring the Lakers’ reserves. The teams traded baskets before Vincent was fouled by Brown on a corner three. After Nnaji and Rui traded baskets, King James turned it over and Pickett converted on a whirling lay-in. Luka checked back in at 9:00 and imissed a quick three. Zeke didn’t miss, though, extending the Nuggets lead to a tenuous 96-92. Then THJ, who LeBron had been hunting, forced a jumped ball, but Smart snagged an offensive rebound and scored.
Murray reentered at 7:30 with the Lakers missing Deandre Ayton for the remainder of the game. Luka hit a pair, giving the Lakers a two-point lead with six minutes left, but after a Watson turnover and offensive foul, Smart was fouled by PWat on a three, capping a rough sequence for the Nuggets’ blossoming wing. Dončić then found Smart in the corner to cap a 12-0 run and take a 104-96 lead after a 5-minute scoring drought for the Nuggets. Mal continued to find open teammates out of the aggressive Lakers’ double-teaming, but another THJ missed three was the teams’ 10th miss in a row.
The Nuggets briefly attempted to reverse the momentum as Watson hit a corner triple followed by a steal and AG three, cutting the lead to 108-102. It wouldn’t be enough, though, as LeBron converted on an empathic dunk followed by an iffy tech on a shooting foul against AG. Murray countered with a fadeaway to bring the Nuggets to within 6—his first points of the second half with just over a minute left. But the Nuggets fouled unnecessarily, leading to 1/2 for Smart and a Lakers’ offensive rebound and additional pair of FTs for Luka to seal the game.
The Nuggets’ next two games are Thursday in Washington followed by a back-to-back Friday against Giannis and the Bucks in Milwaukee.
FINAL SCORE: Los Angeles Lakers 115, Denver Nuggets 107
GAME NOTES
- Luka Dončić’s 38/13/10 was the 52nd 30-point triple double of his career, moving him into 2nd place all-time past Nikola Jokic (per ESPN)
- Murray only had one basket in the second half after scoring 26 in a dominant first
- As a team, the Nuggets shot 54% in the 1st but only 35% in the second
- Tim Hardaway Jr. was an uncharacteristic 0-8 from deep (2-12 overall)
