In the preview of the Lakers and Nuggets, compared with last year's meeting between the two teams, the Lakers have improved this year, and the Nuggets have not improved, on the contrary, they have reduced their personnel. In terms of personnel, the Lakers have reinforcements such as Vincent and Hayes, and although they are role players, they may become an X-factor affecting the series, and James is in better shape this year than last year. On the other hand, after the departure of Brown and Green from the Nuggets, the young players did not show much competitiveness, and it stands to reason that their strength should have declined. Judging from the allocation of resources of the two teams, the Lakers may still be against the wind, but there should be more hope than last year, but the actual result does not seem to be so.
Vincent and Hayes did not become the X-factor of the Lakers' impact series, but Porter on the Nuggets' side became the X-factor of the Nuggets. In last year's Western Finals, Porter's performance was very average, and he was even abandoned by Coach Malone in the closing stage, but this year's Lakers, Porter is completely different. G1's 19 points and 8 rebounds may have been mediocre, but G2's key three-pointers were all lifesavers, with 13 shots in exchange for 22 points, plus 9 rebounds. Today's G3 scored another 20 points, and Gordon became the winner of the Nuggets.
Not only was he still efficient on the offensive end today, but Potter also had a couple of nice assists on the pitch today. In the past, Potter must have pulled some of the balls himself, but now he can pass out to assist his teammates, it is unbelievable that this is still Potter?
A few words about the Lakers. The above-mentioned Vincent and Hayes did not play in this series. In fact, compared to last season, the Lakers only made substitutions on the bench, with Dinwiddie, Vincent, and Prince replacing Schroder, Vanderbilt, and Lonnie Walker, and the starters were not changed at all. So in the end, maybe in terms of personnel, the Lakers actually haven't actually improved. After this round of the series, Zhan Mei's performance was perfect, and the Lakers still lost to role players. The eight inches in the first two games, Russell in this game, compared with Porter, Gordon, and Pope of the Nuggets, are still a little less stable when playing high-end games.