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Fans Think One Brutal Sequence by Anthony Davis, Lebron James Spells Doom for Lakers in Playoff Series vs. Nuggets
If the Los Angeles Lakers want to avoid a repeat of last year’s playoff series against the Denver Nuggets, they might have to include more conditioning in their practice drills.
In Saturday’s 114–103 defeat in Ball Arena, the Lakers saw their postseason hopes slip ever so slightly after losing Game 1 of the series to the No. 2 Nuggets. Despite the close score, fans pointed out one brutal Lakers sequence from the game’s fourth quarter that didn't bode well for Los Angeles’ chances of advancing to the next round.
Down nine points with over a minute to go in the fourth, Lakers’ Anthony Davis and LeBron James tried to narrow Denver’s lead in the paint but ended up turning the ball over instead. Nuggets’ Aaron Gordon came out with the loose ball in transition, and he threaded the needle to Nikola Jokić for a game-sealing dunk.
During that sequence, fans noticed Davis looking gassed with his hands on his knees, unable to get back on defense after the turnover. James did run back and try to guard Jokić, but even he couldn’t keep up with the Nuggets star, who effortlessly collected Gordon’s pass for the easy dunk.
NBA fans thought the Lakers’ lack of discipline and poor physical shape were concerning, to say the least.
The Lakers will play the Nuggets in Game 2 of the series in Ball Arena on Monday night.
