Clippers vs Nuggets G2 Preview: Harden Smallcard Strives to Get One Back Wei Shao is expected to be reused by the new coach

At 10 a.m. Beijing time on April 22, the NBA playoffs will continue, and the Nuggets will play the Clippers again at home. In the G1 game, the Nuggets narrowly beat the Clippers 112-110 and led 1-0 overall. Can Harden lead the team back to a city?

The Clippers did well in many areas of G1, but there was one area where they lost to the Nuggets. The Clippers had 20 turnovers in G1, including seven by Leonard alone, and they lost 110-112 in overtime. The Clippers are ready for G2 and head coach Tyronn Lue said: "We're in good shape, we just need to do what needs to be done. ”

With the Clippers in control of the game and allowing the Nuggets to score just 49 points in the first half, Tyronn Lue doesn't plan to make any changes to the rotation. "We're going to continue the first half of G1. If that doesn't work, we'll make a change. ”

The Clippers G1 played well, including Harden's individual performance, Zubac's role on the inside, and Leonard's efficiency of scoring 22 points on 9-of-15 shooting. Early in the game, the Clippers kept pounding the basket and scored 36 points inside at halftime, but at some point in the second half, they abandoned that strategy.

These mistakes did not shake their confidence. The Clippers know that a G2 win will give them the initiative in the series when they return home.

"Faith, we've always had faith," Harden said. It's a bit frustrating that these mistakes are all self-inflicted, and we've been doing a good job of that over the last few weeks. We were in a good mood and we will come back in the second game and perform better. ”

The Nuggets were just as confident after a somewhat chaotic game that ended up winning hard. Jokic (27 points, 12 assists and nine rebounds) played his part, while the key man was Westbrook. He hit a key three-pointer late in the fourth quarter and put together a brilliant defense in the final seconds of overtime.

Westbrook remained on the court for the final 13-plus minutes of the game while Michael Porter Jr. was on the bench, and as he struggled to find space on offense, Nuggets interim head coach David Adelman sent a better-defended lineup to end the game.

"I think the last five players who stayed on the pitch did their job and we won the game defensively," Adelman said. ”

While Porter Jr. is a better pitcher, he's sitting on the bench for long periods of time and can be in cold form if he comes on in overtime.

On not bringing on Graham Potter in the final minutes of the game, Adelman said: "There are two ways to look at it. You could say that I chose not to play Porter Jr. Or, you can also say – should I put Porter Jr. in a very unfair situation? Should I do this to him? I don't think so. ”

The Clippers' defense also kept Porter Jr. from getting many chances. If that continues in Game 2, it means the Clippers will face Westbrook more.

"If Porter Jr. comes on the court, defends aggressively and can make shots, he's going to stay on the court," Adelman said. Just like everyone else in the locker room. ”

List of injuries and illnesses

Clippers: Full squad

Nuggets: Holmes is out, Gordon is likely to play

ESPN Predicted Win Rate:Clippers 41.7%, Nuggets 58.3%