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Frank Vogel continues to make changes to his defensive plan to give the Los Angeles Lakers the best chance of reaching the NBA Finals.
When the Los Angeles Lakers entered the Western Conference Finals, they knew it wouldn’t have been an easy series to strategically plan on the defensive end due to the Denver Nuggets duo of guard Jamal Murray and versatile center Nikola Jokic. Most of the records used in the previous series would not have been effective against the Nuggets.
The Lakers did quite well thanks to their intensity and commitment in the early games, but inevitably, as the series progresses, adjustments will be necessary, with opponents adjusting and adjusting in the run to find a path on their defense. So Frank Vogel, to stay in control of the series, had to find clues and make his own adjustments.
After a reassuring 2-0 lead, on the brink of a blowout loss, 20 down in the fourth quarter of Game 3, Vogel threw a zone (rather improvised for the series) that allowed the Lakers to return, reaching a possession. of the difference.
Although they eventually lost the game, it showed that in desperate cases such a defense could help eat some ground and cut a deficit in a relatively short period of time. However, with a big man like Jokic on the court, it’s still a risky strategy that could end up coming back against the Lakers.
As the main goal remains to limit the Joker and try not to impact the game, Vogel flirted with the idea of initiating Dwight Howard instead of JaVale McGee, given the excellent work he did in the first few games.
However, as long as they kept winning, he decided to stick with his usual five. However, shortly after suffering the first loss, Howard was moved to the starting lineup for Game 4 and the trade paid off.
Throughout his 22 minutes on the court, the Serbian center-back scored just six points, and just two when protected by Dwight. Superman was huge, scoring 12 points and 11 rebounds on six offensive boards, crucial considering the Lakers only had 25 rebounds in Game 3.
At the other end of the axis is Jamal Murray, the best and hottest point guard of these playoffs. Vogel built on what he had learned from the previous series facing the other point guards in the league and implemented a constant rotation of defenders on Murray.
He also seems to catch him on the pick and roll, but not too strong, considering Jokic’s presence as the second playmaker on the court. The intensity of the double team would increase with the Joker on the bench.
It’s hard to stop such a hot, performing player, and in the final five minutes of Game 4, with the Nuggets threatening another comeback, LeBron James asked Vogel directly for Murray’s assignment, basically shutting him down. He was scoreless for the rest of the game.
An immense display of LeBron James’ greatness even on the defensive end, where he hesitated the most in recent years, and proof of Vogel’s wise judgment in entrusting him with the task. Although, after all, who would answer ‘no’ to the best player on the planet?
Anyway, throughout the fourth quarter, the Lakers head coach decided to go with a versatile defensive lineup, playing Markieff Morris and Anthony Davis the entire period on the front court, always having at least one between Alex Caruso and Rajon. Rondo on the court, and alternating Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Danny Green on the wing.
In the end, it worked and Los Angeles got away with a 3-1 win.
Once again, Frank Vogel and his team demonstrated their competence in taking down games and opponents, exposing their weaknesses, and finding a way to counter their strengths. His adjustments will have to continue throughout the series, hopefully helping the Lakers close it out as soon as possible.
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