The Lakers’ lesson was more about the slow start than the furious finish.“It’s the Western Conference finals — you can’t ease into games,” Davis said. “Even though they say, ‘Oh, Game 1 is a feel-out game’ and everything like that, you never want to ease into the game, especially at this point in the season.”

LeBron James, for one, didn’t feel good about the Lakers making a game of it only to come up short anyway.

“In postseason it doesn’t matter if you cut it to one or you’re down 20, if you lose, you lose,” James said. “They are 1-and-0 and we have to come back with desperation going into Game 2. ... We need to be better in all facets of the game.”

From start to finish.

Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray continue to turn in jaw-dropping performances during these playoffs, raising expectations along the way.

They took Round 1 of their Western Conference Finals showdown against LeBron James and Anthony Davis, a game in which Jockic was dazzled by the fortitude of of his Denver Nuggets teammate, who played through a painful ear infection.

“Of course maybe he’s just faking it,” the Nuggets big man interjected after the Nuggets staved off the Los Angeles Lakers 132-126. “He didn’t want to practice.”

A little comedy to go with their chemistry.

Opponents have found nothing funny about the Murray-Jokic combo in the playoffs. They are playing their best basketball since the 2020 NBA bubble. Seven months after that run, Murray tore his left ACL and had to sit out the last two postseasons.

Now, Murray and Jokic are back to showcasing a brand of two-player hoops reminiscent of the John Stockton-Karl Malone era in Utah. But they seek what eluded Stockton and Malone.

“Oh, yeah. We know what put us in that hole: no transition, rebounding,” Davis said. “They’re a physical, hard-playing team. They were very comfortable doing whatever they wanted. In the second half we just imposed our will, especially in that fourth quarter, playing Laker basketball. We were able to cut the lead.”

The Lakers were behind 21 points when they started playing and they could not overcome the deficit.

Not only did Denver’s defense disappear after halftime but Lakers coach Darvin Ham found a way to slow down Jokic. He put Rui Hachimura on the Nuggets star in the fourth quarter which allowed Davis to roam the rim.

A two-time NBA MVP, Jokic was unstoppable in the opening two quarters. He joined Kevin Garnett as the only players in the last 25 years with 15 points, 15 rebounds and five assists in a half. But in the fourth quarter, he was held without a basket and was limited to three points and a pair of assists.