Nuggets Coach Reacts to Lakers' Major Adjustment on Nikola Jokic

The Lakers put Rui Hachimura on Nikola Jokic in the second half of Game 1

The Los Angeles Lakers made an adjustment in the second half of Game 1 vs. the Denver Nuggets, putting Rui Hachimura on Nikola Jokic for a stretch of possessions. According to the NBA's admittedly imperfect matchup data, Hachimura defended Jokic for 17 possessions in Game 1, holding him to 1/3 shooting, including three turnovers.

While Anthony Davis is one of the best defenders in basketball, the matchup data vs. Jokic did not look good for him in Game 1. According to the NBA's matchup data, Davis defended Jokic on 51 possessions in the series opener, and Jokic shot 8/10 from the field with 11 assists in those possessions. 

While a one game sample size is never large enough to draw any major conclusions from, some have speculated that the Lakers may opt for more possession of Hachimura on Jokic in Game 2, given the success they had with that matchup in Game 1. 

Nuggets head coach Michael Malone was asked about this adjustment following the series opener, and seemed to indicate Denver's struggles in that second half were a product of their defensive slippage more than anything else. 

"Well, we were having a hard time scoring," Malone said. "We were turning the ball over. We had 19 fast-break points tonight, but 17 were in the first half. That's because we were getting stops and turning them over and running out. In the second half we didn't get stops, so it became a half-court game which is to their favor. They have the number one half-court defense in the playoffs."

According to Malone, Denver's second half struggles were primarily due to their inability to get out in transition the same way they did in the first half.

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