D’Angelo Russell must come off the bench to unlock best defensive lineup for the Lakers

For a while during the Western Conference Finals opener Tuesday night, it looked like the Denver Nuggets would run the Los Angeles Lakers off the floor. Denver’s early success was led by an astonishing 19-point, 16-rebound, seven-assist first half from Nikola Jokic — who had quite the three over Anthony Davis to punctuate this magic.

But then the Lakers adjusted.