Barry Recks
Nearly three years since the NBA Bubble, the Los Angeles Lakers and the Denver Nuggets meet again in the Western Conference Finals. This series is expected to be an all-out affair between a team that had to go through the Play-in Tournament and another that ended the regular season on top of the West’s standings.
Read on for more about the 2023 NBA Playoffs, including the latest odds, pick, and prediction to win the matchups in the Western and Eastern Conference finals, as brought to you by JefeBet. Also, don’t forget to check out the other NBA game previews here to help you make the best betting decisions.
Predictions, Picks, and Betting Odds for the 2023 Western Conference Finals
Los Angeles Lakers vs Denver Nuggets
This series between the Lakers and the Nuggets is a compelling one. On the side of the Lakers is an aging, but still very much effective all-time great in the form of LeBron James. He’s slowed down a bit, but King James remains a major game-changer.
His combination of power, size, and basketball IQ will matter a lot in the Western Conference Finals just as it did in the previous two rounds. The Nuggets, on the other hand, have Nikola Jokic, whose intelligence matches that of LeBron’s and has the size and efficiency to go with it. Those two players are also backed by an incredibly talented cast of weapons. LeBron has the likes of Anthony Davis and D’Angelo Russell running with him in the starting lineup, while Jokic has Jamal Murray, Michael Porter Jr., and Aaron Gordon.
Davis is definitely expected to play a major role for the Lakers against the Nuggets. He will be his team’s primary Jokic stopper. Slowing down, let alone neutralizing the two-time league MVP, is a tough ask, but Davis is arguably the best option in the entire NBA to take on that unenviable challenge. The Brow can also impact the game in a whole lot of other ways outside of just matching up with Jokic. He is a great rim finisher, rebounder, and versatile defensive weapon that can go all the way out in the perimeter when needed.
The Nuggets rely heavily on Jokic, who’s shooting above 50 percent from the field in the playoffs, while averaging a near-triple-double. That being said, Murray is one explosive Jokic sidekick who can take over the game all by himself when he gets hot. Murray is making 25.9 points in the playoffs. As a team, the Nuggets have the best offensive rating (118.7) in the postseason.
Prediction: Nuggets in six games.
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