A mouthful from coach Frank Vogel, five minutes of madness and a LeBron James boss. We could summarize in these three ingredients the recipe for the success of the Los Angeles Lakers Thursday evening, on their floor, against the Denver Nuggets (114-93).
For what was the first reunion between the two franchises since their duel in the Western Conference finals last fall in the Orlando bubble, the defending champions had a hard time finding the solution, confirming their immense difficulties in home since the start of the exercise (5 wins, 4 losses).
At halftime, Frank Vogel’s men were even twelve points behind (46-58, 24th), which earned them a salty speech before returning to the floor. ” He jumped down our throats “, Then confirmed the interior Anthony Davis, whose performance on the evening proved disappointing (13 points to 5 of 8, 9 rebounds).
A reframing which had the effect of launching a one-way third quarter, and which completely reversed the balance of power: a 37-17 which stunned the visitors while the rookie Angelin Talen Horton-Tucker (17 points) illustrated.
Unable to react, the Nuggets conceded a scathing 19-0 in five minutes, between the end of the third period and the start of the fourth.
LeBron James in triple-double and always higher
Disoriented and not helped by the relatively discreet match of Nikola Jokic (13 points to 6 of 16; 10 rebounds, 6 assists), the Nuggets gave up their arms during money-time, overwhelmed by a second half at only 33 points scored (68 cashed).
While coach Michael Malone had recalled his executives to the bench, LeBron James remained on the floor for a final possession, punctuated by a sublime assist, synonymous with the second triple-double of the season (the 96th of his career) for the “King”: 27 points, 10 rebounds, 10 assists.
« LeBron continues to prove he’s the best player in the league appreciated Vogel, who did not fail to recall that his leader overtook legend Wilt Chamberlain during the evening in the number of baskets scored during his career (12,691 for James against 12,681 for Chamberlain). Here is the quadruple NBA champion (2012, 2013, 2016, 2020) behind Karl Malone (2nd, 13,528 baskets) and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (15,837) now.
« Every time my name is associated with a category and among the biggest names to have played, it makes me humbledelivered the winger after the game. I think back to my youth, when I read magazines or books, that I immersed myself in the history of this sport because I loved it so much, in order to know who paved the way for young people like me. To be associated with the great Wilt Chamberlain is an incredible achievement for me. »
In the wake of their superstar, the Los Angeles Lakers took advantage of this success to come back up to the Los Angeles Clippers in second place in the Western Conference (17v-6d), with only one loss more than the Utah Jazz, leader (17v-5d). The gap seems widened with fourth place, occupied by the Nuggets (12v-9d).