Harrison Faigen isn’t sure the Lakers should stick with their latest defensive approach against Nikola Jokic but is otherwise pleased with their defensive dominance this postseason (Keith Allison/Creative Commons).

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The Los Angeles Lakers, a team dismissed by some before the playoffs as not deep enough to win it all, have placed themselves two wins from their first NBA Finals appearance in a decade. They lead the never-say-die Denver Nuggets 2-0 after Anthony Davis’ buzzer-beating 3-pointer secured a thrilling Sunday night victory. To break down the series and its many compelling storylines, OTNB is joined by Harrison Faigen, Editor-in-Chief and writer for SB Nation’s Silver Screen & Roll, and Katy Winge of Altitude TV and Altitude Sports Radio.

*Time stamps may vary due to dynamic advertising:

Faigen (9:05-11:16): “This is one of the most seamless fits I think we’ve ever seen between two superstars…I think that by far the biggest [factor in Davis wanting to play for the Lakers] was getting to create this seamless partnership with LeBron James, where both of them are constantly making each other better. Anthony Davis is probably the best big man that LeBron James has ever played with, arguably his best teammate in terms of being able to make him better and how Davis does things that kinda paper over LeBron’s weakness, and LeBron does things that paper over Davis’. It’s just been complete symbiosis this year, both on and off the court.

HF (19:46-20:40): “Last night [in Game 2], I really didn’t like what the Lakers did on [Nikola] Jokic. They were switching too easily… I don’t think that you want to have to send doubles at Jokic because he’s one of the best passers in the history of basketball, probably the best we’ve ever seen from a big guy and just has incredible floor vision and smarts and speed at reading defenses, and he’s gonna pick you apart if you’re constantly doubling him…I don’t know if that’s sustainable to play into something that is a strength of the Nuggets.”

HF (26:16-26:33): “Frank [Vogel], I think, deserves a ton of credit for how versatile this team has been and how he has them ready to play a bunch of different styles. We mentioned during the Rockets series, completely adapting how they played and how they play defense on the fly. And the Lakers have a lot of smart players who deserve credit for that, but so does the coaching staff.”

HF (29:50-30:09): “It’s almost Jordan-esque in the way that they look for perceived slights, and I think honestly they’ve gotten a lot of them. They heard all the chatter before the Blazers series. ‘Oh, the Lakers don’t want to play this Blazers team. They’re really dangerous.’ And then they went out and stomped them. And then ‘Oh, the Rockets. I don’t know if the Lakers can keep up with them.’ And then went out and stomped them, too.”

Winge (39:43-40:15): “This team has the mental toughness and the fortitude of no other team I’ve ever been around. And I think each guy just has this chip on his shoulder individually and as a member of the Nuggets team. And even head coach Michael Malone takes on that type of mentality as well, so you can see that kind of bleeding into his players and into the franchise. And it’s something that they’ve leaned into, especially when they’ve been on the stage during the playoffs and have gotten more attention than they’re used to. But they’ve been asking for respect for the last couple years.”

KW (48:16-48:21): “Any given night, it can be anyone on this Nuggets team. They just need someone.”

KW (53:42-54:18): “P.J. [Dozier] is a much bigger guard, and he [Malone] loved that. He loved that aspect of the matchup. He wanted to see what he could do out there. And I think P.J. proved to everybody that he can do a lot and that he is an NBA player. Coach Malone has been behind P.J. Dozier since he became a member of this Nuggets team and has been preaching, ‘He’s an NBA guy. He’s an NBA guy.’ And then in that game, not afraid to take a charge on LeBron James. How many guys can say that they’ve done that before? And P.J. just fearlessly comes into the game and makes some huge defensive plays and then makes some pretty good offensive plays as well.”

KW (57:45-57:48): “This team just never dies. They never quit.”

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Music: “Who Likes to Party” by Kevin MacLeod.