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French Media Agency
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With a spectacular triple over the horn of Anthony Davis, The Los Angeles Lakers defeated the Denver Nuggets 105-103 this Sunday and were 2-0 in advantage in the final of the Western Conference of the NBA.
In one of their usual comebacks in these playoffs, the Nuggets had recovered from a 16-point deficit (70-54) to lead 103-102, after 12 consecutive points from Serbian center Nikola Jokic.
But with just 2.1 seconds to go, veteran Rajon Rondo hit the bottom and delivered the last ball to the pivot. Anthony Davis so that, defended by Jokic, he nailed the triple of the victoria, culminating in an extraordinary performance of 31 points, 2 triples, 9 rebounds and 2 blocks.
“People talk about how they had never been in this moment before, about pressure. I’m ready for this, ”Davis stressed. “I want to take these shots. It’s part of my legacy. I want the big plays (…) This is what they brought me for, to make big plays ”.
At 27 years old, and after seven seasons with the New Orleans Pelicans, Davis is contesting his first conference final in the uniform of the Lakers, a team he asked to join to fight for the ring with LeBron James.
This week Davis was included, along with James, in the best quintet of the season, after averaging 26.1 points, 9.3 rebounds, 1.5 steals and 2.3 blocks per game.
This Sunday ‘King James’ finished with 26 points, 11 rebounds and 4 assists for the Lakers, dominating the game in the first half but making many mistakes in the second, registering a total of six turnovers.
“I definitely thought the ball would get to me,” James said of the final play strategy. But “Rajon (Rondo) got the reading right”.
Davis “is different, it’s that simple (…) He proved that he is one of the best players in the world.”
For the Nuggets, Jokic scored 30 points, captured 6 rebounds and distributed 9 assists while the other figure, Jamal Murray, scored 25 points with 4 assists.
With this last-gasp win, the Lakers avoided repeating the mistakes of their neighboring Clippers, who were surprisingly eliminated by the Nuggets in the previous round after dominating the series 3-1 and falling in three straight games in which they blew big. points advantages.
“There are no moral victories”
Following a sweeping opener victory on Friday, LeBron James emerged determined to maintain control of the tie from the start with 12 consecutive points, including two 3-pointers.
James had already 20 points when the break was reached with the Lakers dominating by 10 points (60-50). Jokic and Murray tried not to get too far behind on the scoreboard, supported by rookie Michael Porter Jr., who scored 10 of his 15 points in the first half.
The Lakers stepped on the accelerator in the third quarter and came to be placed with advantages of up to 16 points but the Nuggets, addicted to comebacks, did not throw in the towel and reached the last quarter with a deficit of only 4 points (82-78).
With a spectacular 12-point streak from Jokic in the final five minutes, the Nuggets went 103-102 with 20 seconds to go.
With the last possession for the Lakers, Danny Green was blocked by Jamal Murray but the ball went deep with two seconds to play, in which Rondo found Davis for the triple winner.
“They have two great players,” Jokic admitted. “LeBron, probably the best player in the league, and Davis, perhaps the best scorer. We can only make it more difficult, more uncomfortable ”.
“We put in the effort, the fight. We lost the game but we played well most of the game, ”he stressed. “We must hold our heads high and look at the next one.”
“This is the final of the Western Conference. There are no moral victories, there are no silver medals “, the Nuggets coach stressed, Mike Malone.
The third game of the series will be played on Tuesday on the non-spectator court at Disney World (Orlando).
The other conference final, the East, will return on Wednesday with Game 4 between the Boston Celtics and the Miami Heat, who dominate the series 2-1.
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