The Denver Nuggets are set for yet another postseason bout with the Los Angeles Lakers in 2024, this time meeting them in the first round of the playoffs.
It's the latest chapter in a lengthy playoff history between the two teams.
The Nuggets, of course, swept Los Angeles in the 2023 Western Conference Finals en route to the franchise's first-ever title. That series marked the fourth time the two teams have squared off in the conference finals since 1971 – which at the time was tied for the most such matchups between any two teams, according to SportsCenter.
Denver and LA have met a total of eight times in the postseason. Up until last year, the all-time series wasn't exactly banner material for Nuggets fans. The Nuggets lost each of their first seven playoff series against the Lakers.
Here’s a look at each series, starting back in 1979 when the first round series was just three games:
1979 Western Conference First Round
The Nuggets and Lakers split the first two games of the series before the Nuggets lost Game 3 – and the series – in Denver. A Kareem Abdul-Jabbar hook shot with 12 seconds to go proved to be the game-winner.
See the full series stats here.
Golden Daily Transcript April 16, 1979 by Landon Haaf on Scribd
1985 Western Conference Finals
The Lakers win in five games, thanks in part to an injury to Nuggets superstar Alex English, who racked up 93 points in two-plus games before leaving Game 3. Even with English in the lineup, the Lakers dominated the series en route to a championship win over the Boston Celtics.
See the full series stats here.
1987 Western Conference First Round
The top-seeded Lakers swept the Nuggets in three games. The Lakers would go on to win the title.
See the full series stats here.
2008 Western Conference First Round
In a best-of-seven series, the Nuggets are once again swept, 4-0.
See the full series stats here.
2009 Western Conference Finals
Kobe Bryant goes over 30 points five times and the Lakers win the series in six games, including a crushing 119-92 win in Game 6.
See the full series stats here.
2012 Western Conference First Round
The six-seed Nuggets took the three-seed Lakers to seven games but lost the series.
See the full series stats here.
2020 Western Conference Finals
This was the notorious bubble series, which took place in September in the pandemic-interrupted 2020 season. Despite the arrival of “bubble Murray,” who averaged 27 points per game in the two previous series – including performances of 36, 50, 50 and 40 points – LeBron James’s Lakers easily handled Denver in five games.
See the full series stats here.
2023 Western Conference Finals
Denver finally got the Lakers monkey off of its back in 2023, and did it in convincing fashion. The Nuggets' four-game sweep of LA included an instant classic in Game 4, in which Denver overcame a 15-point halftime deficit to win 113-111. Nikola Jokic averaged a triple-double in the series, posting 27.8 points, 14.5 rebounds and 11.8 assists per contest.
See the full series stats here.