The Los Angeles Lakers trailed the Nuggets 0-3 in the Western Conference Finals, and have come to the moment of adversity, from the perspective of the lineup and the process of the game, the Lakers are not without the power of a battle, but more or less problems in the process of the game, and the Nuggets seized the opportunity to take the game directly.
The reason why the Nuggets can enter the playoffs as the first in the West must have their own characteristics and advantages, Jokic has always been their mainstay, but after coming to this round of the series with the Lakers, Murray's strong outbreak caught the Lakers off guard, which also increased the difficulty of the Lakers' defense, plus in more critical moments, there are always other players to stand up to help the team, Pope, Brown, Gordon and others can also share the scoring task for them, it is difficult for the Nuggets not to become the leading side.
Ham, who has been questioned before, brought to the Western Conference Finals with the efforts of the Lakers, which is slightly less embarrassing. But in the face of this kind of competition, the lack of experience and ability is vividly reflected. The use of a three-guard lineup in the first game has already been reflected, and the Nuggets starting lineup is on the tall side, facing players such as Jokic, Porter Jr. and Gordon, and letting Schroder and Russell be on the floor at the same time is too misaligned.
And the offensive side does not have any tactics to speak of, from the first three games, Russell is sluggish, Schroder basically has no role on the offensive end, the defensive end is constantly being singled out, and he still uses this lineup in the second and third games, which is part of the reason why the Lakers lost the game.
It is not difficult to see that Hamm trusts Schroder, but the new coach is too rigid, the Lakers' reversal path this season has been based on defense, obviously in the playoffs, Hamm has left the defense behind, and it is obviously unwise to compete with the Nuggets offensive.
The use of personnel was too rigid, Russell was sluggish, and Hamm replaced Russell with the equally sluggish Schroeder, and did not use the better defensive Vanderbilt and Brown. For Reeves and Hachimura, who performed well in the first three games of the series, there were not many opportunities in the tactical system.
Judging from the first three games, the Lakers were unable to withstand the pressure in the fourth quarter, scoring difficulties at key times, and the grasp was not high, James was not strong offensive in the fourth quarter due to physical problems, and Davis did not get the corresponding tactical position, and Reeves, who performed steadily, was not entrusted with heavy responsibilities. Just like the last game, the Lakers led each other in the fourth quarter, but the offensive end repeated, just like the second game, was played by the Nuggets in a wave, even after replacing Davis, he did not play on the offensive end, you must know that in the case of James' poor physical fitness, the core of the Lakers should be Davis.
On the whole, it is no accident that the Lakers lost the game, the head coach started from the wrong starting point, coupled with the overall poor performance, no one could stand up at key moments, so it fell into such a situation.
Although the series is not over yet, it is worth looking forward to what changes the Lakers can make in the face of such adversity and whether they can perform miracles again.