LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. – “Go home!”
In the wild aftermath of Anthony Davis’ gut-punch 3-pointer to steal Game 2 from the Nuggets, Lakers irritant Dwight Howard’s words were unmistakable.
For a few seconds, Howard repeated his scathing message over and over again in the direction of Denver’s deflated bench.
As devastating as Davis’ 3-pointer was, it’s going to take two more wins before the never-say-die Nuggets even consider breaking down camp. They were one miraculous shot away from their fourth comeback this postseason from at least 15 points down.
Down 2-0, the Nuggets are in must-win territory. Despite their previous escapes, a loss in Tuesday’s Game 3 will all but start their chartered flight home.
Once the pain subsides and sober heads prevail, the Nuggets will take a fresh look at what happened. They’ll see 19 turnovers, including many that were unforced. They’ll see breakdowns on the defensive glass, which can’t happen against a team of the Lakers’ caliber. They’ll notice hesitation on the offensive end, a non-starter when the team’s best player is also the most unselfish.
But they’ll also see an unbending will that stormed back from 16 points down in the second half to take the lead late. And they’ll see a second-half defense reminiscent of the one that saved the Nuggets six times so far in elimination games this postseason. Maybe most importantly, and the reason why the Nuggets aren’t buried yet, is the film will show a dogged fight from Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray, whose 31 points in the second-half bested Davis and LeBron James’ 28.
The Play
Michael Malone was late in calling for a Mason Plumlee substitution. Up 103-102 with 2.1 seconds left, the Lakers didn’t have any timeouts left. Denver had one, but it’s possible Malone didn’t want to use it to aid the Lakers.
At any rate, when Plumlee checked in for Paul Millsap, there wasn’t much time to establish how the Nuggets would play it. Jerami Grant and Plumlee had some communication prior to the inbounds pass. What they settled on was unclear. Plumlee seemed to think switch, Grant evidently didn’t. He stuck on James’ hip, obviously not a bad decision unless Plumlee was thinking he’d roll to the perimeter.
It’s a substitution Malone has used before in late-game situations. His crunch-time defensive lineup almost always includes Plumlee and Grant because of their ability to switch. The strategy has won them games multiple times this season. What’s more, Davis had buried a 3-pointer from almost the exact same spot over Millsap only three minutes earlier. That image probably stuck with Malone.
But whatever happened before Davis gathered, unimpeded, on the game’s decisive shot, will stick with the Nuggets all offseason, whenever that comes.
The shame is that Plumlee had been fantastic in his nine minutes on the court. When the Lakers stretched their lead to 16 in the second quarter, Plumlee’s vision helped keep the Nuggets within striking distance. He served four assists in just five minutes, and his offensive rebound led to an open jumper for Monte Morris. Near the end of the game, he even took the defensive assignment on James and held his own. Not that anyone will remember the positives, but they were there.
The Lapses
What might sting most is that Davis’ shot may have been preventable. There were the five missed free throws in the fourth quarter, including four from P.J. Dozier. The defensive specialist played the entire fourth quarter after, Malone said, Morris rolled an ankle. He played exceptionally well after logging a total of 12 minutes total in the Clippers’ series.
Dozier drew two offensive charges and threw a well-timed lob to Plumlee that sparked Denver’s fourth quarter. But his frustration at missing the final two free throws, with the Nuggets down 97-92 with 3:28 left, was palpable. After the second, he threw his head back in disgust.
The other aspect that will gnaw at the Nuggets is their defensive rebounding. After the Nuggets had tied it at 82 with just under ten minutes remaining, the Lakers got two extra looks after James missed a free throw. Nothing eats at Malone more than yielding offensive rebounds off free throws. Nothing. The scramble led to an extra layup for Lakers wing Kyle Kuzma.
The Nuggets might have been able to survive that if it didn’t happen again, four minutes later, in even more crushing fashion. Rajon Rondo snagged a long rebound saving the possession. The ball eventually found Kentavious Caldwell-Pope in the corner for a soul-snatching 3-pointer that gave the Lakers a 95-89 lead with 5:40 remaining. Caldwell-Pope was even being draped by Grant. He just drained it.
In total, the Lakers had 13 total offensive rebounds for 16 second-chance points.
The Stars
What more can be asked of Jokic, who scored Denver’s final 12 points of the game Sunday night? His willingness to shoulder the pressure and attention for the Nuggets is astounding. Jokic’s tap-in off of Murray’s deflected 3-pointer with 32 seconds remaining deserves to be remembered. Most players don’t have the presence of mind to get the tip up, let alone the touch to make it fall. His ensuing basket might have made an even louder statement.
When Jokic dropped his left shoulder and bullied Davis for the go-ahead basket, it reminded the entire NBA how physical he can be, even in his svelte state. There’s no debating Jokic’s postseason credentials. Jokic is as good as anyone in the NBA come clutch time. For the second consecutive series, he’s averaging around 25 points on over 50% shooting.
It didn’t yield the same results, but Murray played with a similar fire in the second half. He attacked mismatches and launched from outside with zero hesitation. The Nuggets trust Murray’s 47% 3-point percentage this postseason and want him taking those looks. He connected on only 2-of-9 Sunday night.
The point is, there was no second guessing. There’s no telling how many missed shots it would take before Murray, Jokic or Michael Porter Jr. would lose confidence. How many guys in the league would confidently stroke a 3-pointer in James’ face the way Porter did early in the second quarter?
Malone has said it numerous times all postseason. He wants his guys to shoot with confidence. Between Grant, Millsap, Torrey Craig and Gary Harris, there were numerous occasions where that didn’t happen.
Ball movement created quality shots, and those opportunities were missed when players didn’t seize their chance. Grant, Millsap and Harris were 6-of-16 from the floor in Game 2. And though Grant was 3-of-4 himself for seven points, there were several instances he bypassed what should’ve been an open look. Over the last seven games, he’s shooting just 25% from outside. Cameras even caught Porter imploring Grant to shoot more. The Nuggets can’t wait for Jokic and Murray to bail them out them out.
As deflating as Sunday night was, anyone who has written the Nuggets off already might need their memory checked. This team has more fight than anyone ever knew.
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