What more can the Los Angeles Lakers do to defeat the Denver Nuggets? Well, for starters, they need their role players to step up in tonight’s Game 3 to stand any fighting chance in this series. Because, while LeBron James and Anthony Davis played their part in the first two games, their supporting cast crumbled under pressure. Moreover, even Rui Hachimura, who played well against Denver a year ago, has had zero impact in the series yet. His struggles led Darvin Ham to give him some words of wisdom, which might help him get back in form.

During a one-on-one conversation with Hachimura before going on the floor tonight, Ham advised the Lakers forward, “Don’t overthink it.” Because of the pressure that comes with the playoffs, it is easy for players to suffer from “paralysis by over-analysis”. Maybe that is what has limited Rui Hachimura’s performance because he was doing wonders in the regular season up until the playoffs started.

By scoring 13.6 points every night in the regular season, and also grabbing over 4 rebounds per game, Rui impacted the Lakers’ success on both ends. He also improved his three-point shooting to 42.2%. But in the first two playoff games however, Rui has scored a total of only 10 points, while shooting an abysmal three of eleven from the field. Then, citing the example of D’Angelo Russell’s improvement in Game 2, Ham expects Rui to do the same tonight. “Just have fun and be aggressive on both sides of the ball,” Ham added.

Can Rui Hachimura repeat what he did in 2023?

All Hachimura needs to do to regain his form is remember what he did against Denver in last year’s Western Conference Finals. Although the Lakers ended up getting swept by Nikola Jokic and Co., the Forward had a solid series. He averaged over 15 points in those four games, becoming one of the key offensive weapons in that series. He also scored 21 points in Game 2 while shooting 80% from the field.

Not only that, Rui played a significant role in momentarily stopping The Joker’s offense. When Anthony Davis couldn’t guard Jokic, Ham put Rui on the Nuggets’ Big Man, and he did a decent job limiting his offense. That also opened a door of opportunities for AD. Maybe that is what the Lakers need to get a win tonight.

After watching The Joker dominate Davis in the first two games, Darvin Ham might not hesitate in putting Hachimura on Jokic for some time. That will free up AD and give him more breathing room on offense.

Another factor that might help Rui is that tonight’s game will be played at the Crypto.com arena in front of LakerNation. Do you think Hachimura will take Darvin’s advice and bounce back in Game 3?

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