Nikola Jokic has sent a warning to his team by reminding them that you can never write off LeBron James.
The Denver Nuggets have opened up a commanding 3-0 lead over the Los Angeles Lakers in the NBA Western Conference Finals. The Serbian has been instrumental in his team’s performances and on what could be described as an off night, he still recorded 24 points, eight assists and six rebounds in game three last Friday.
After recording his fourth rebound in the 119-108 win, the 28-year-old became just the 2nd player in NBA history with 2,000 points, 1,000 rebounds and 800 assists in a single season. Led by an explosive 37-point game from Jamal Murray, the Nuggets are just one game away from booking a place in the NBA Finals. In the history of the postseason, no side has recovered from a 3-0 deficit to win a series in 149 previous attempts.
Though happy with his team’s current position, Jokic is wary of James, who has dragged his team out of difficult situations before, most notably in the 2016 NBA Finals as he rallied from 3-1 down to beat the Golden State Warriors with the Cleveland Cavaliers.
"I won't say that I'm scared, but I'm worried because they have LeBron on the other side,” Jokic said regarding the upcoming game four. “And he's capable of doing everything. We're going to come here with the same mindset, same focus, and I think that's going to put us in a situation to win a game."
With the game finely poised just under halfway through the fourth quarter, the Nuggets put the game out of the Lakers’ reach by going on a 13-0 run from the 7:48 mark until there was 4:50 remaining, stunning the Crypto.com Arena into silence. According to Nuggets coach Michael Malone, both Jokic and Murray repeatedly ran a two-man pick-and-roll game suggested by the Serbian, and it helped the top seeded team outscore the 2020 champions 35-26 in the fourth quarter.
"Nikola, you can't keep him down for a whole game," Malone said via ESPN. "The end of the game, him and Jamal were playing a two-man game. I have to [give] credit where credit is due: That was Nikola's call. He said on the bench, let's go to this play. Let me and Jamal play the whole side of the floor, and we'll make the right reads. We milked that down the stretch. Coach Jokic did a great job tonight."
Though happy to help his team in every possible way, Jokic does not have any plans to step into coaching following his future retirement. "I don't want to be a coach," Jokic said. "That's the worst job on the planet for sure."
James and the Lakers have not been totally outplayed over the course of the series, but the Nuggets have produced better basketball when it matters most. The 38-year-old is shooting 48% from the field in the series so far, but has made just three of his 19 shots from three-point range - a miserly 15.8%
Though things look bleak for a Lakers team with their backs firmly against the wall, the four-time champion is keeping hope alive ahead of tonight's game four. "I can’t speak for the guys right now because I don’t know what’s going through all their minds, but I still (believe)," James said. "So it’s time to go right back home and start to refuel and start the treatment process and recovery process and get ready for Monday. My mindset is always locked in."
