Nikola Jokic Identifies One Advantage Nuggets Have Over Lakers

• The Los Angeles Lakers and the Denver Nuggets face off in the conference finals for the first time since 2020
• The Lakers won that series in five games, but Nikola Jokic does not remember that series
• He says they are much more experienced and have the chemistry needed to beat the Lakers

The Denver Nuggets are looking to reach the NBA Finals for the first time in franchise history when they face the Los Angeles Lakers in the Western Conference finals.

The Nuggets finished the regular season as the top seed in the West, and Nikola Jokic feels their team's chemistry would come in handy in this series.

The Nuggets faced the Lakers in the 2020 Western Conference finals in the bubble, but they lost to the eventual champions in five games. Since then, the Lakers retooled their roster after two disappointing seasons in 2021 and 2022.

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Meanwhile, the Nuggets have added some good depth to their team, and some consider them favorites for the title. Moreover, Jokic won two MVP awards since the two sides met in the conference finals.

The Serbian center averaged a triple-double in the first round against the Phoenix Suns. He posted 34.5 points, 13.2 rebounds, and 10.3 assists while shooting 59.4% in the series.

He will face off against Anthony Davis, who has been excellent in the playoffs. In 12 games this postseason, he's averaging 21.2 points and 14.1 rebounds per game while shooting 53% from the field.

Jokic on facing Lakers

The 5x All-Star said they will be facing a different Lakers team. He is right. Only LeBron James and Davis remain from the 2020 conference finals.

Moreover, they changed much of their roster before the trade deadline.

"We didn't play with this kind of Lakers [team]," Jokic said. "So this is going to be basically a new team for us. Probably everything is new, everything is different. They're playing amazing in these playoffs. Since [the trade] deadline, they're playing really well," via ESPN.

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Jokic reiterated that this Denver team has more experience and chemistry.

"We are more experienced," Jokic said. "We have been there before. We are maybe a little bit more, not focused, [but playing in] different environments [than the bubble]. So I think we are just experienced, playing a little bit more together."

The Lakers have beaten the Nuggets in three Western Conference Finals. It took five games in 1985, six games in 2009, and five games in 2020, per Denver Sports.

Green predicts Lakers vs. Nuggets

Sports Brief earlier reported on Golden State Warriors veteran Draymond Green laying out a strategic blueprint for the Lakers to deal with Nikola Jokic.

Green said the key to stopping the Nuggets is to limit either Jokic's passing or scoring.

Jokic has already faced Minnesota's Rudy Gobert and Karl Antony-Towns, and Phoenix's DeAndre Ayton in the first two rounds.