DENVER — The Denver Nuggets’ high-powered offense and the Los Angeles Clippers’ stalwart defense meet in the first round of the Western Conference playoffs, with Game 1 tipping off Saturday.
Denver and LA took markedly different paths to 50 wins and the Nos. 4 and 5 seeds in the West. The Nuggets will host the series with interim head David Adelman after an up-and-down year that ended with the unprecedented late-season firing of then-head coach Michael Malone and GM Calvin Booth. The Clippers, on the other hand, have been relatively drama-free and ride an eight-game winning streak into the postseason with a healthy Kawhi Leonard.
“I feel like [the Clippers] have the momentum here,” said Denver7 Sports’ Bradey King. “It'll just be which team shows up. The Nuggets obviously have home court advantage, which should be a big help.”
- Denver7 Sports’ Lionel Bienvenu, Nick Rothschild and Bradey King broke down three keys to the series. Hear their analysis in the video player below:
Nikola Jokic vs. Ivica Zubac
The Clippers are an excellent defensive team, and Zubac is their big, physical anchor in the middle. He averages 17 points, 12 rebounds and more than a block per game, and will draw Nuggets superstar Nikola Jokic on defense.
“That's the matchup I want to see, Jokic and Zubac,” Bienvenu said. “Zubac, the big fella, the big physical beast in there – that Jokic-Zubac inside matchup is going to be great.”
Zubac and the Clippers have provided a unique challenge for Jokic this season, too. The Serbian star doesn’t outright struggle against anyone, but his worst offensive efficiency came against the Clippers across his three matchups with LA in 2024-25.
“I don't know if it's Ivica Zubac that sort of throws him off his game with the physical nature of his interior play, or if there's something about the scheme, but Jokic tends to be more of a distributor when they play the Clippers,” Rothschild said.
For that reason…
…the Nuggets must spread the wealth
The NBA world has seen how Jokic is able to will the Nuggets to win with MVP-caliber play. But King says that’s not when Denver is at its best.
“We don't need Jokic to go out and score 60,” she said. “While it's fun to watch, it usually ends in a Nuggets loss, because he is trying to put the team on his back and do everything.”
If Jokic is going to be a distributor, the Nuggets will need a balanced scoring attack like they saw in the regular season finale, when players scored between 11 and 19 points en route to a win over Houston.
Healthy Murray, Gordon
Most notable on the Nuggets’ injury list this season has been Jamal Murray, the team’s second-best player and a historically clutch performer in the postseason who missed time as recently as 10 days before the postseason series.
Just as pivotal for Denver, though, will be Aaron Gordon, who was limited to 51 games this year and will likely draw the lion’s share of possessions against Clippers defensive standout Kawhi Leonard – who himself played just 37 games this season and missed the first 33.
“Aaron Gordon is going to be huge in this series. He's going to draw Kawhi Leonard more often than not, defensively, and Kawhi has been out of this world since returning to the lineup,” Rothschild said. “The Nuggets never faced Kawhi this season in the four games they played against them. So Aaron Gordon's calf needs to be right, and Jamal Murray is Mr. Playoffs.”
“If he has his effort and his body dialed in, he's really the straw that stirs the drink. If he can play well in this series and beyond, the Nuggets can continue to win and move through the playoffs. We know Nikola Jokic will bring it. Jamal Murray, for me, is the catalyst.”
Nuggets-Clippers playoffs schedule, TV info (game times in Mountain Time)
- Game 1: Clippers @ Nuggets | Saturday, April 19 at 1:30 p.m.
- Game 2: Clippers @ Nuggets | Monday, April 21 at 8 p.m.
- Game 3: Nuggets @ Clippers | Thursday, April 24 at 8 p.m.
- Game 4: Nuggets @ Clippers | Saturday, April 26 at 4 p.m.
- Game 5*: Clippers @ Nuggets | Tuesday, April 29 at TBD
- Game 6*: Nuggets @ Clippers | Thursday, May 1 at TBD
- Game 7*: Clippers @ Nuggets | Saturday, May 3 at TBD
*if necessary