After a grueling six-game series against the defending champion Golden State Warriors, the Los Angeles Lakers have punched their ticket to the Western Conference Finals after running away with a victory in Game 6 at home.
It was a hard-fought series between the No. 6 and No. 7 seeds, but the Lakers prevailed behind superstar performances from LeBron James and Anthony Davis. The schematic adjustments and physicality felt like Finals-level basketball, but at the end of the day Los Angeles proved their dynamic duo is still one of the best pairs in the league.
The Lakers came out with the urgency fans had hopes to see to start Game 6, racing out to a 27-10 lead. The Warriors, though, didn’t lie down as they battled back to make it a tight contest.
However, Los Angeles responded in the third quarter as they worked the Golden State defense for quality looks that they were able to convert. From then on, momentum completely rested with the purple and gold who kept their foot on the gas pedal in the fourth quarter to take the win.
While beating the Warriors is a massive accomplishment, the Lakers aren’t going to have much time to rest as they take on the No. 1 seed Denver Nuggets. Denver dispatched the Phoenix Suns in six games behind a masterful series from Nikola Jokic and they will be yet another formidable opponent for Los Angeles.
Jokic serves as the offensive hub for the Nuggets, but they’ve also improved considerably on defense thanks to Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Aaron Gordon. Those two coupled with Jamal Murray and Michael Porter Jr. on the perimeter makes for a difficult challenge for the Laker defense.
With the Western Conference Finals matchup set, the NBA released the full schedule for the series with Game 1 set to take place on Tuesday in Denver.
Lakers Schedule
Game 1: Los Angeles Lakers at Denver Nuggets: May 16, 5:30 p.m. PT, ESPN
Game 2: Los Angeles Lakers at Denver Nuggets: May 18, 5:30 p.m. PT, ESPN
Game 3: Denver Nuggets at Los Angeles Lakers: May 20, 5:30 p.m. PT, ABC
Game 4: Denver Nuggets at Los Angeles Lakers: May 22, 5:30 p.m. PT, ESPN
Game 5*: Los Angeles Lakers at Denver Nuggets: May 24, 5:30 p.m. PT, ESPN
Game 6*: Denver Nuggets at Los Angeles Lakers: May 26, 5:30 p.m. PT, ESPN
Game 7*: Los Angeles Lakers at Denver Nuggets: May 28, 5:30 p.m. PT, ESPN
*If necessary
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