“Chemistry takes time. You saw today that it’s getting better. Every day, it’s getting better” said Luka Doncic after the recent matchup against the Denver Nuggets. Early February dropped a major bomb on the NBA community after it was announced that the Slovenian would be traded to the Los Angeles Lakers for Anthony Davis. Therefore, with the advent of a new era for the Lakers, one would have questioned how long it would take for Luka to adjust to his new team.

The answer was provided today, as Luka Doncic and LeBron James recently teamed up to break the Lakers’ eight-game losing streak against the Denver Nuggets when away. However, Jamal Murray holds the belief that the credit for the win should extend beyond the two scorers.

The Nuggets point guard participated in a presser after the recent game. During the Q&A session, a reporter asked Murray whether LeBron James and Luka Doncic’s team-up had changed the way the Nuggets handled plays, like offense. Murray admitted that the duo are “great players”. However, what impressed him more was Rui Hachimura’s performance. In fact, all the ‘role players’ from the Lakers side left a memorable impression on him.

After all, “they’re other guys that just kept them (Luka and LeBron) up by 20 or 10 or whatever it was, and that made it difficult, and we weren’t able to get a stop”. For Jamal Murray, the adjustment in the Nuggets’ play should have also accounted for the change within the role players, and not just focused on Luka and LeBron. After all, it changed the Lakers’ offense as a whole.

Mar 21, 2024; Denver, Colorado, USA; Denver Nuggets guard Jamal Murray (27) reacts after a play in the fourth quarter against the New York Knicks at Ball Arena. Mandatory Credit: Isaiah J. Downing-USA TODAY Sports“That was the biggest…. we turn it over, and couldn’t get a stop. So, it was just like a, what’s the word? I don’t even know, I don’t even know” said Murray during the presser. “I’m going to try. Just a pile up of things that didn’t go our away tonight, and we didn’t adjust, which is another big thing. We didn’t adjust, or have any diversity. What we were doing. So, that um, that was also another one”.

The role players did see getting more of a role during the recent matchup. The same Rui Hachimura, who made 6 points and 12 rebounds in the previous game against Portland, recently made 21 points (although 0 rebounds). He and Austin Reaves raised hopes for Lakers fans after making three back-to-back 3-pointers in the 3 quarter. Both Reaves and Hachimura changed the definition of a role player by adding 23 and 21 points to the overall total, which aligned quite closely with LeBron and Luka’s 25 and 32 points respectively.

With Luka Doncic coming in, it was apparent that the Lakers were going to change offensively. After all, the Slovenian was the lead scorer for the Mavericks. He averaged 28.1 points, 8.3 rebounds, and 7.8 assists during his last 22 games there. Unfortunately, that same Luka was not present during his first 3 games with the Lakers. JJ Redick admitted that the struggle of adjusting Luka in the lineup affected the offense.

After all, “Sometimes when the group is trying to get acclimated with each other, you try to play the right way too much and turn down shots”. Despite this, the Lakers head coach admitted that “I think the flow of everything is gonna happen. I’m excited, this is a new problem to solve and we’ll work our butts off to solve it”.

And solve it, they did. Furthermore, Redick couldn’t have found a better opportunity to test his new offensive play than against the Denver Nuggets. After all, Nikola Jokic and Co defeated the Lakers in 13 of their previous 14 matchups.

The change in the post-Anthony Davis offense certainly caught Jamal Murray by surprise. Therefore, he didn’t hold back in being blunt to ensure that what happened recently should not happen again.

Dismissing Lack of Chemistry, Jamal Murray urged Nuggets squad to “get better”

During the same presser, a different reporter asked Jamal Murray whether the Nuggets squad needs to redevelop the chemistry between his teammates to play better now. After all, if the Lakers built up their offense, then shouldn’t the Nuggets? However, it is important to remember that before the loss against LeBron James and co, the Nuggets had established a 9-game win streak.

Furthermore, they currently hold a higher seed than the men in Purple and Gold. The chemistry between the team players is already there. Despite this, the 28-year-old power forward believes he needed to address the recent loss as a lapse.

“I think we just got to get better,” said Murray. “I don’t think we, like, we don’t, it’s not like we don’t know each other, or have the chemistry. I think just we just got to get better at whatever we’re doing. Um, we got to get better”.

Do you believe that the Lakers’ days of getting fed Ls by the Nuggets are over now? Let us know in the comments below.