The Denver Nuggets just eliminated the Los Angeles Lakers in the first round of the playoffs.
Revenge?
Last year the Nuggets and Lakers faced each other in the Western Conference finals. In that matchup, the Nuggets defeated the Lakers in just 4 games.
This year the Nuggets and Lakers faced each other again in the first round of the playoffs, so the Lakers were seeking revenge from last year.
Unfortunately, that did not work out for them. The Lakers did do slightly better than last year, winning 1 game this year, but still lost 4, and were eliminated in just 5 games.
Nikola Jokic
Nikola Jokic is a 2x Most Valuable Player and has a good chance of winning the award again this year.
Unsurprisingly, Jokic was the best player in this series against the Lakers and one of the main reasons that the Nuggets were able to win.
In this series, Jokic averaged a very impressive:
28.2 Points
16.2 Rebounds
9.8 Assists
1.2 Steals
59% of shots made
Jamal Murray also played pretty well for the Nuggets in this series, hitting the game winner in 2 of the 5 games!
The Denver Nuggets won the NBA finals last year, so we will see if they can do it again this year. So far, it is looking good for them.
Lebron James
While the Lakers were eliminated Lebron still played very well.
In this series, he averaged a very strong:
27.8 Points
8.8 Assists
6.8 Rebounds
2.4 Steals
56.6% of shots made
These stats are especially impressive when you consider that Lebron is the oldest player in the entire NBA and his stats are still some of the best in the league.
Another thing to note is that Lebron realistically might not have that many playoff games left.
Lebron has played 21 years in the NBA and is now 39 years old, and he recently admitted that he doesn't have much time left in the NBA. Many people think that he will retire after playing with his son, Bronny, for 1 year in the NBA.
The Denver Nuggets will now face the Minnesota Timberwolves in the second round of the NBA Playoffs.