The Denver Nuggets claimed two comeback series wins from 3-1 trail to make the Western Conference Finals for the first time in 11 years. Back in 2009, the Nuggets lost to the Lakers 4-2 in the West Finals, and the Lakers won the NBA Championship that year.

A challenge for big men of both teams

On Denver's way to the West Finals, Nikola Jokic was their shiniest star and his role was way more valuable than the average stats of 25.8 points, 10.8 rebounds and 6.0 assists per game. In the first-round playoffs against the Utah Jazz, Jokic tore the opponents' defensive system apart by turning Rudy Gobert, the pillar of Utah's defense, a liability.

Then in the West Semifinals against the Los Angeles Clippers, Jokic maximized the power of his isolation play, showing the Clippers that neither Ivac Zubac nor Montrezl Harrell could limit him defensively. As a result, the Clippers began to trap him, which was also Jokic's favorite defensive choice because it slimmed down the defensive pressure on his teammates.

What made Jokic almost impossible to defend was his complete offensive skills, epic court vision and historic passing ability. The combination of size, power and touch of Jokic enabled him to launch and finish offense almost every where from the 3-point line to the paint. Meanwhile, he could always see open teammates and pass the ball to them in various ways. Taking possession in the high block was already regular work for Jokic. He was also spotted making full-court pass like Larry Bird, no-look pass like Magic Johnson and insane pass like Manu Ginobili.

It's safe to say that so far this season, no big man has caused enough trouble for Jokic in defense. That may change as he's about to meet the giant group of the Lakers: Anthony Davis, JaVale McGee and Dwight Howard. The Lakers began to cut minutes of McGee and Howard from Game 2 in the series against the Houston Rockets only because the two became defensive liabilities against Houston's small-ball squad. However, Denver do not have the best-spacing with any of their lineups. The Lakers will have very good reasons to give Howard and McGee longer time on the court to tussle Jokic.

Nonetheless, that does not cut down the challenge posed by Jokic against the Lakers' big men. The purple and gold could maximize their offensive power only when Davis was playing as the center. He will be the only one tall enough to challenge Jokic's shooting in the squad and he will have to follow him closely, which will leave a huge part of rim protection responsibility to 35-year-old LeBron James. Denver have not been known for charging against the bucket but they make a lot of cuts, especially via backdoor in the game. That can make the Lakers' defense very miserable.

The purple and gold's trouble is not over with their defense. The team's shooting problem is even worse than that of Denver's. Driving against the opponents' paint took a big part of their offense. Denver proved in their series against the Clippers that they could close in to limit the individual attack by Kawhi Leonard who finished half of his possessions in mid-range jumpers. The Lakers would have to challenge Denver's defense by throwing themselves against the wall built below the free throw line.

Jamal Murray holds the key for Denver again

Besides the brilliant performance in the series against the Clippers by Jokic, Jamal Murray also played an important role, especially in the last three straight wins Denver claimed. Marry is not a deadeye shooter but when he started cooking, he was able to drop 20 points in one quarter. That happened in Game 7 and led to the foolish decision by coach Doc Rivers to trap Murray.

Murray has not been known for explosive athleticism and he was not a fan of charging the rim again and again in most time. When the Clippers had Patrick Beverley or Paul George on him, Murray was having a hard time. However, the Lakers did not have top perimeter defenders like those two. Danny Green is probably the most reliable choice the Lakers have but he may not be able to take care of Murray by himself, especially when Murray launched 80 percent of his offense via screen play with Jokic.

That will put the purple and gold in the dilemma defensively. If they defend Murray one-on-one, there's good chance of watching him grow hot quickly and destroy the Lakers' defense via shooting, like he did with Utah. If the Lakers trap Murray, they will have to figure out how not to lose like the Clippers did.

What about James?

Before the series against the Clippers, almost everyone was convinced that Denver had no response to Leonard who enjoyed advantage in size and power, not to mention that he enjoyed over 70 percent field goal rate in the middle range. Nonetheless, after seven games, the Clippers lost and Leonard even had terrible shooting performance like 6-22 in the last game.

Then what about LeBron James? Apparently James cannot shoot like Leonard in the middle range. He can make decent shooting efficiencies from time to time but James built his offense on charging the rim and posting up around the free throw line. That's the biggest difference between him and Leonard. Despite his improved orchestrating ability, Leonard is a finisher whose job is to score. James, on the other hand, is one of the best orchestrators in NBA history. When he posted up within the 3-point line, Denver will have to trap him because it won't take James long to pass his defender and charge the rim – remember, Jokic has never been known for good rim protection.

Of course, James cannot swallow every defender of Denver by posting up in every possession of the game. The Lakers' shooters must drill those open shots created by him to complement each other. Meanwhile, Davis must make Denver's defense pay with his shooting and penetration. If they end up relying on James to solve everything in offense, the Lakers will be in great danger.