The Denver Nuggets won Game 3 of the Western Conference first-round series 112-105 on Thursday night, moving them one win away from winning their second straight playoff series against the Los Angeles Lakers.
“Winning is a lifestyle for us,” Nikola Jokic told reporters after the game, adding that he doesn't want to go back to when the Nuggets struggled early in his career.
Jokic credited their success to the time Nuggets players spent working together and building chemistry, which shows on the court every night.
The Lakers have lost seven straight playoff games against the Nuggets since February 2023, and 11 straight overall.
It was the third straight game in the series in which the Lakers led by at least 10 points, but they were unable to maintain that momentum for all four quarters.
The Lakers, who blew a 20-point lead in Game 2, led by 10 at the end of Thursday's first quarter. The Nuggets were dominant in the second half, as they had been in the series thus far. They outscored Los Angeles 177-135 in the third and fourth quarters.
Jokic has become an unstoppable force for the reigning NBA champions. The two-time MVP finished with 24 points, 15 rebounds and nine assists, one assist short of his second straight triple-double. He averaged 27.7 points, 63.5 percent shooting, 15.7 rebounds, and 8.7 assists in the series.
Jamal Murray hit the winning buzzer-beater in Game 2, but was otherwise inefficient, shooting just 37.7 percent from the field. Aaron Gordon significantly rebounded from his slump on Thursday with a team-high 29 points and 15 rebounds in 41 minutes.
The Lakers' duo of LeBron James and Anthony Davis is doing well. Davis recorded his third straight 30-point double-double, and James had at least 26 points, eight assists and six rebounds in all three games.
The supporting cast in Los Angeles is a mess. Austin Reeves, D'Angelo Russell and Rui Hachimura combined for 15 of 48 3-point shots. Spencer Dinwiddie and Gabe Vincent are averaging a combined 4.0 points per game.
Jokic and the Nuggets certainly seem content with the winning lifestyle. Without breaking a sweat, they were just one win away from advancing to the second round.
Denver will look for a shutout against the Lakers in Game 4 at Crypto.com Arena on Saturday at 8:30 p.m. ET.