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Lakers expect to get a heavy dose of Nelson

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One would think the Lakers would be satisfied with their performance in Game 1 of the NBA Finals against the Orlando Magic.

The Lakers thoroughly dominated the Magic in winning by 25 points. They put the defensive clamps on the Magic, holding it to 30% shooting, bottled up Orlando center Dwight Howard and did not allow many clean looks for the Magic’s three-point shooters.

But nooo.

“You’re never extremely satisfied,” Lakers assistant coach Brian Shaw said Friday. Shaw is in charge of developing the Lakers’ game plan to slow down the Magic, the same as he did during the regular season.

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“But I’m happy with the effort that our guys put forth. It’s just one game, so whether they lost by 25 or they lost by one, it’s just one game. They’re going to make adjustments and we’re going to have to make adjustments,” Shaw said.

The biggest adjustment he expects from the Magic will involve Orlando’s All-Star guard Jameer Nelson. “I wouldn’t be surprised at all if Jameer Nelson is starting in Game 2 on Sunday,” Shaw said. “He didn’t show as much rust as a lot of people think that he would.”

Nelson was supposed to be out for the rest of the season after surgery Feb. 19 for a dislocated right shoulder and torn cartilage. But Nelson checked into Game 1 in the second quarter and finished with six points and four assists in 23 minutes.

But Magic Coach Stan Van Gundy said Friday that Nelson would continue to come off the bench.

Here’s Shaw’s take on what the Lakers must continue to do in Game 2.

Defending Howard: “We’d like to play Howard as much as we can straight up,” Shaw said.

That means Lakers center Andrew Bynum and Pau Gasol have to be active on defense. Both must beat Howard to his spot and race down the court as much as possible and try to keep him from getting deep post position.

The Lakers will mix up their coverages on Howard. They’ll send double teams from all angles at Howard, from Gasol and Odom at power forward to Trevor Ariza at small forward to guards Kobe Bryant and Derek Fisher.

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Dealing with Nelson: “Containing dribble penetration particularly with him is going to be critical for us,” Shaw said of Nelson.

The Lakers want to slow Nelson down on the perimeter and not let him get into the teeth of their defense.

More diversified offense: Bryant scored 40 points in Game 1. He took 34 shots.

But the Lakers want Gasol, Bynum, Ariza, Odom and the rest to become factors as well on offense. “We’d like to keep [Orlando] off balance more by keeping other people involved,” Shaw said.

The team that loses usually has the most adjustments to make. That would be the Magic.

Taking aim at Bryant: Defending Bryant, which was nearly an impossible task in Game 1, will be its first order of business.

The Magic left rookie guard Courtney Lee and Mickael Pietrus to defend Bryant one on one, with very little success.

Extra points: The Magic also need more production from Hedo Turkoglu and Rashard Lewis.

Turkoglu scored 13 points, but he shot only three for 11 from the field. Lewis had only eight points on two for 10 shooting.

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Both have to score more for the Magic to have a chance.

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broderick.turner@latimes.com

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