Denver Nuggets vs Portland Trail Blazers - 5 Things we learned from the first 3 games of the series | 2021 NBA Playoffs
The Denver Nuggets have turned a 0-1 deficit into a 2-1 lead in their first-round matchup against the Portland Trail Blazers in the 2021 NBA Playoffs with consecutive victories behind Nikola Jokic's offense.
The Portland Trail Blazers controlled NBA MVP candidate Jokic in the first game of the series by keeping him away from creating offense for his teammates (though Jokic still involved his team colleagues, who missed some shots). The first game was won by Terry Stotts' team with brilliant playmaking and scoring from Damian Lillard, and also great production from the team's bench.
5 Things we learned from the first 3 games between Denver Nuggets and Portland Trail Blazers | 2021 NBA Playoffs
The Denver Nuggets have managed to overcome their Game 1 woes in the last two games and now lead the series. Coach Malone's team are looking to grab a 3-1 lead to return to Denver for Game 5.
In this article, we give you five things we have learned from this first-round battle between the Denver Nuggets and Portland Trail Blazers in the 2021 NBA Playoffs.
#5 Enes Kanter has to play more for the Portland Trail Blazers
Enes Kanter was a solid player for the Portland Trail Blazers throughout the regular season as starting center Jusuf Nurkic missed a good part of the season with a right wrist fracture.
Kanter put up 11.2 points and 11 rebounds per game in the regular season, appearing in every game for the Portland Trail Blazers. Those numbers went up to 13.3 points and 13.2 rebounds per game in 35 outings as a starter.
In the series against the Denver Nuggets, Kanter has only played 12 minutes per match, and he appeared in only five minutes of Game 3. With Jokic leading the Denver Nuggets' offense, it would not be a bad idea to throw Kanter into the mix more often and possibly apply pressure to the Serbian on the defensive end.
Kanter's rebounding could have been big for the Portland Trail Blazers towards the end of Game 3 and he can surely contribute for the team.
#4 Denver Nuggets' Facundo Campazzo is a solid player
Facundo Campazzo bothering Damian Lillard's offense was probably an impossible task for the Argentinian point guard heading into the series. But Campazzo has done a good job in the series so far, on both ends of the floor.
Campazzo is averaging 10.3 points, 4.7 rebounds, 6.3 assists, 2.3 steals and a block per game so far. Moreover, his alertness on defense has been great, as he leads players from both the Denver Nuggets and Portland Trail Blazers.
In terms of shooting, Campazzo has been solid, putting up shooting splits of 43.5/46.2/83.3.
#3 The Portland Trail Blazers' defense continues to struggle
The Portland Trail Blazers' defense was lackluster throughout the 2020-21 NBA regular season, as it ranked 29th in the entire league.
In the current series against likely NBA MVP Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets, the Blazers' defense has not stepped up consistently enough, and it has cost the side.
The Portland Trail Blazers jumped to a 1-0 lead in the series after an adequate defensive performance in Game 1. However, after three matchups, the Blazers' defense has a Defensive Rating of 126.1 in the series against the Denver Nuggets.
Denver has made 50.2% of its field goals in the series so far, and 42.2% of its three-point shots.
#2 Denver Nuggets' bench has stepped up
While Damian Lillard's tremendous outing of 34 points and 13 assists was a huge factor in Game 1, the performance of the Portland Trail Blazers' bench was crucial to their win. The Blazers' bench outscored Denver's 34-20 throughout the game with a great outing from Carmelo Anthony.
However, the Denver Nuggets' bench has played well in the last two games and has won the bench battle in each of the last two games, 38-21 and 24-19, respectively.
Monte Morris has been the best bench player for the Denver Nuggets in the series against the Portland Trail Blazers, as is averaging 10 points and 5.7 assists per game so far.
#1 Nikola Jokic is a nuclear weapon for the Denver Nuggets
Nikola Jokic is likely to win the 2020-21 NBA Most Valuable Player award, and he was expected to be a brilliant player in the 2021 NBA Playoffs. However, his performances are still stunning to see, as is his control of the team's offense.
Jokic was held to only one assist in the first game, with Portland's strategy working well. The Denver Nuggets' inability to hit open shots was essential to Portland's win in that game.
Two games later, Jokic has guided Denver to consecutive wins and is averaging 36 points, 11.7 rebounds and 3.7 assists in the series so far.
He has scored over 34 points in each game of the series against the Portland Trail Blazers and has sensational shooting splits of 57.7/50/94.4. Though the sample size in the 2021 NBA Playoffs is small, Jokic has been truly brilliant so far.
Also read: Top 5 players with the most 50-point games in NBA playoffs history