Tonight, the LA Clippers will play the first-ever playoff game at Intuit Dome against the Denver Nuggets. A win would be a historically remembered accomplishment, as the only correct answer in trivia regarding the outcome would be that it ended in a way fans would have wished for.
However, winning against the Nuggets is more difficult than it seems, as they are expected to come much better prepared to guard Kawhi Leonard. Defenders like Aaron Gordon, Jamal Murray, and Christian Braun will focus on covering his vision with traps, and head coach Tyronn Lue's job is to have other guys cut promptly.
Most efficient Offensive Matchups after the first 2 Playoff games…
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Moreover, David Adelman of the Nuggets will not just be making adjustments on Leonard but also on Ivica Zubac and James Harden. These two have been phenomenally efficient scorers and playmakers, making it troublesome for Denver to ball-watch the two-time champion.
That said, Lue must also show up with his revised game plan, which merges the mishaps from games one and two.
2. A change in the most-used lineup
With two games digested, Tyronn Lue played the same group of starters for 50 minutes, the most used of any combination of players. This includes Kris Dunn, James Harden, Norman Powell, Kawhi Leonard, and Ivica Zubac.
Furthermore, these five have been concurrently awful, as their net rating is -5.6. The offense may need some improvements, but at a defensive rating of 119.6, Lue must come to a stopping point.
To adjust, Lue has Nicolas Batum on the bench, who has the best defensive rating of anyone over 20 minutes per game at 96.5.
1. Being more conscious when guarding Nikola Jokic to prevent the Nuggets from being in the bonus early
Up until the officiating crew gave out multiple technical fouls to solve the encounter between Norman Powell and Nikola Jokic, both teams' physicality was raised to 99. There was lots of grabbing, hand checking, and contact upon contests the referees let slide.
On the contrary, after the incident with Powell, the officials were eager to sound their whistle. Opposing center Nikola Jokic made immediate detections and began to foul-bait whenever he felt any incidental or marginal contact.
This Oscar-level presentation from Jokic put Denver in the bonus early and the rest of the way. Though he was not hitting his free throws, it should be key tonight for Lue to have his players be self-conscious of their defensive hand placement and to contest without leaning forward.