The Los Angeles Lakers advanced in five games past the Houston Rockets in the 2nd round of the NBA Playoffs and did so while rarely playing the style that helped them build the best record in the Western Conference. They pushed Anthony Davis up to center and had LeBron James take more traditional power forward duties on defense to combat Houston’s small-ball look. But the Nuggets, led by Nikola Jokic, are anything but small. Because of the match-up against arguably the best center in basketball, the Lakers are expecting to lean on their big men more in this series.
Lakers head coach Frank Vogel told reporters just before Friday’s game that he “intends” to play both JaVale McGee and Dwight Howard against the Nuggets.
"They'll both get their opportunities. I do intend to play both of them," Frank Vogel says of JaVale McGee and Dwight Howard.
— Lakers Nation (@LakersNation) September 18, 2020
Howard and McGee both played sparingly in the last series but in the four regular season games against the Nuggets, both played major parts. Howard often got more minutes than McGee, save for the seeding game they played in the bubble, which ended on a buzzer-beating 3-pointer from Kyle Kuzma.
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