The Nuggets are the first team in NBA history to beat LeBron James ten straight times and he speaks about being on the brink of elimination with his team.
No NBA team has ever come back from an 0-3 deficit in the playoffs and after dropping Game 3 112-105 on Thursday, LeBron opened up on his mindset.
“You just take it one game at a time, at this point,” he said, when asked if he thinks Lakers could change history. “You lose, you go home, so you come out with the mindset, let’s get one. Force a Game 5, and then we go from there. As long as you still have life, then you always have belief. I just think you play until the wheels fall off. That’s what it’s always about, for me.”
James’ running mate, Anthony Davis shared a similar mentality postgame, “Our focus, and our mental right now, is trying to get one. Trying to get a game on Saturday and then go from there. We can’t focus on [dropping the last 11 games to Denver], our focus is on trying to get better. From tonight, learn from our mistakes and try to get a win on Saturday.”
In what is no doubt going to turn into a meme, LeBron summed up the situation by saying, “It’s just basketball. At the end of the day, it’s just basketball.”
Lebron James fans gonna defend this 💀💀pic.twitter.com/I1aNfMpnUx
— sea✰ (@destroynectar) April 26, 2024
The Lakers lost a heap of momentum during the game because outside of Anthony Davis (33 points, 15 rebounds), LeBron James (26 points, nine assists), Austin Reaves (22 points, four steals), no one contributed positively.
All Lakers players outside of Davis, James and Reaves combined for only 24 points on 10-30 shooting.
D’Angelo Russell scored ZERO points in 24 minutes of play and was ripped to shreds on socials after the game.
As for the Nuggets, the franchise is enjoying being in the winner’s circle and it’s a life Nikola Jokic has become accustomed to.
“I think I said one time that winning is a lifestyle for us,” Jokic said. “It’s really good when you’re winning…everybody is happy. Everybody wants to play. Everybody is buying into the system…I was here when we were losing. I don’t want to go back.”
We’ll leave you with this sobering stat: Lakers haven’t beat the Nuggets since December 2022.
READ MORE: Lakers Brass React to Anthony Davis’ Pointed Postgame Comments
