For a short time on Saturday night, it looked like the Los Angeles Lakers were ready to go toe to toe with the reigning NBA champion Denver Nuggets. But as the first-round Game 1 stretched into the late stages, the tough Nuggets got stronger, and the Lakers lost all of their steam.
Case in point: This horrible effort by LeBron James and Anthony Davis.
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In the final moments of Denver’s resounding victory, Aaron Gordon got set to casually dribble up the court. But when Davis put his hands on knees, not even trying to run past half court, as James simultaneously half-heartedly jogged, that left an opening for Nikola Jokic to score an exclamation point dunk for the Nuggets.
It should be no surprise that James and Davis stopped trying down by nine with just over a minute to go. Both older stars played very heavy minutes (James played 41 minutes, Davis played 45) as the Lakers tried to sell out for the road upset. Factor in the challenging Denver altitude, and it’s no wonder both were clearly feeling gassed at the end. That said, this is a postseason-setting near the highest levels of NBA basketball. You’re not supposed to stop competing and stop trying, even if you feel tired. It’s a bad look in any context.
Naturally, NBA fans let the two Lakers stars have it for simply giving up.
