The Nuggets and Lakers will head back to Denver for game five on Monday night. The Lakers made sure they avoided a second straight sweep by taking game four at home, but the Nuggets are still firmly in control of this series, leading three games to one.
Despite the loss, there is no reason for concern for the Nuggets… at least there wasn’t. One thing the team certainly can’t endure is an injury to one of their core players.
The starting lineup has been completely healthy and a driving force of success for the Nuggets over their last two playoff runs, however, that may change with the status of one of the stars in question.
Other than his heroic fourth quarter of game two, Jamal Murray has been struggling mightily in the series, especially with his jump shot and three-point shot. He hasn’t been able to take over or make his imprint the way he normally does in the playoffs and that was on display down the stretch in game four when the Nuggets simply could not get over the hump.
Well, now it appears there may be more to it as Murray has been added to the Nuggets' injury report with a calf strain for game five. This is obviously concerning and a sign that something must be wrong with Jamal.
We never want to see one of the star players missing a playoff game, but it’s fair to wonder if the team should rest him to make sure he is fully healthy for the later rounds because as we’ve seen in past years, without their fully healthy team this team is in trouble. And without a healthy Murray, they are not winning a title this season.
Nuggets injury report
The big story is Jamal Murray being downgraded to ‘Questionable’ with a calf strain. It didn’t look great in LA, and it seems his status is very much in doubt for this one. Suddenly, this series just got a lot more interesting. Reggie Jackson managed to play through his ankle sprain and he’s been upgraded to ‘Probable’, while Vlatko Cancar remains ‘Out’ (knee).
Lakers injury report
For the Lakers, the stars are both ‘Probable’ and AD (wrist), and LeBron James (ankle) will almost certainly suit up. Jarred Vanderbilt (foot) has been upgraded to ‘Questionable’, Jalen Hood-Schifino (lumbar disc) and Cam Reddish (ankle) remain ‘Out’. Christian Wood is off the report completely.
Betting odds
The Nuggets are 7.5-point favorites at home and the game has a total of 217.5 points.