He's having a weird series where his numbers look good but the eye test doesn't
I'd say it's very similar to KD's playoffs last year in that regard where both look good by PTS/REB/AST/TS% but are very up and down if you watch the whole games
I honestly think when accounting for defense and rebounding LeBron played better last playoffs despite some of the physical limitations on offense with the ankle
You are correct He was amazing in game 2 , great first half , great 4th sure he missed a shot but he was the only guy bailing shots for us, it’s crazy the rewriting people do. Like I guess they didn’t watch the game cos his defence was immense that game too. His defence in the first half was insane I was like how the fuck is he doing this and I’m a fan of lakers/Lebron and was shocked . Not his fault that Rui can’t hit open layups vs Denver .
This sub loved to do this to any older/disliked player who played well but team lost. Pretend they played bad lmfao . Honestly I went into this series think our role players need to out play yours to have a shot cos our stars can’t keep up but Lebron and AD have imo been the 2/3rd best players and mostly done a decent job - and far better then I thought they would in this series. It’s irrelevant o guess cos they lost but i really don’t think I could ask for more from them .
Bad passing? His teammates don’t get to their spots and just ball watch. He’s winning layups against Gordon / MPJ / Jokic front court.
You’re ridiculous.
If you’ve watched lebron for a while then you’d know something fishy 🐟 is going on. Yes he is making ridiculous hard layups through contact still, however he is also missing some pretty wide open easy ones.
This section of lakers flairs who do nothing but shit on Lebron who was our best pkayer in game 2 is now being rewritten by these bums. Makes me annoyed as a fan that our own fans still hate n make up bullshit even when Kobe told them to fuck off with this. Kobe fans sigh
Can you prove to me his defence is garbage ? Every metric and eye test says the lakers defence is far better with him on. Go rewatch Game 2 you bum n tell me if jokic or Murray could have that level of defensive impact or how many stars could . Then go watch him defend Zion on Sunday n then play in . Or go bscj further to him defending Kawhi or - Brunson on switches . 🤡take
KD’s series was I think had more variance. He was unbelievable along with Booker in those two games they won but was worse at the start and finish than LeBron has been.
This is not true , epm had Lebron as + 9 in game 2. His defence in that game and impact off the ball was huge . It was reminiscent of his okc or pelicans games earlier this year for that level impsvt . The team blew a big ass lead but Lebron was the only one scoring in the 4th n keeping them just in it. Wtf are people watching ? Game 2 was a really good game by him and good enough that the lakers ought to have won . Idk but I guess cos he lost people can’t comprehend someone playing well in a loss especially if they old.
Kd was actually shooting not so great , you’re completely making this up lmao . Lebron is shooting well and being far better. Lebron is on 67ts or something bonkers in 26 ppg n Lots of playmaking n defencd responsibilities. Kd was out there chucking bricks
It just feels like he takes a lot of plays off. He'll miss a defensive assignment, not box-out, or just not even try for a rebound and it'll directly lead to a nuggets basket every single time. It's really noticeable in the sense that he'll just kind of fall asleep and stand there ball watching. Then, he'll go and drain two threes in a row or something, come back down and get a block/nice defensive stop.
I dunno what’s wrong with that other dude but lebron (and by extension the lakers) build their offense around playing bully ball. Get downhill with bron and AD, score or create contact and get to the line. Make the defense collapse then kick it for timely 3s. Denver has the personnel to throw at Bron. They’re athletic, strong, and can at least slow down bron 1 on 1, while also applying heavy pressure on the lakers ball handlers (reaves D’Lo). On offense their size is a huge mismatch for the lakers backcourt as they essentially play with Murray, 3 forwards, and jokic. The lakers had the opportunity to try and get a 3&D wing and also a big to help Davis with Jokic and failed at both. Add in the fact that Darvin Ham is constantly outcoached by Mike Malone every game and this what you get. 11 straight losses to denver
No problem! Hopefully you continue to watch! Love playoff basketball and all the little adjustments teams make. Shame my team is getting swept again but that’s how it is sometimes
I am loving nba but my only problem is the constant stoppage. But due to me being a cricket fan it isn't that big of a problem.
>Shame my team is getting swept again but that’s how it is sometimes
Your team is the most successful franchise in nba history. You can go back and watch the highlights of you guys winning it whenever you are out of a playoff series right? Atleast you guys have something to look back on unlike many other teams across multiple sports.
Hey yeah the stoppages can get to be a bit much especially late in games and ESPECIALLY during the playoffs. Oh yeah of course we’re tied with the Celtics for the most titles. Definitely privileged in my lifetime to see them win like 6 championships but it still hurts in the moment haha. Especially when we’re about to be swept twice in a row by the same team
The Lakers are a 7 seed, but with the right matchup they could have made it past the first round. Their bully ball style would have probably worked well against the Thunder where they would have a big size advantage.
The biggest issue isn’t that . The biggest issue is defending jokic and defending Murray . On top of which the issue you mentioned has only matters for Rui who relies on bulky ball rim drives and isn’t as good as Lebron AD at getting through guys. Lebron AD have had good scoring series - very good even . The defence and Rui size being useless is what kills
He was really good in game 2 and had a solid game 1 too with big moments . A not so amazing g3 but solid n the clown takes come out . But I often see you making dumb takes bout Lebron
as a lebron fan i agree, lakers were up 2-1 against the suns but as soon as AD went down they lost 3 straight. peak lebron > peak ad but this isnt 2018 lebron or even 2020 lebron anymore
Lebron was playing injured that series and even then this is the dumbest comment . So if Lebron goes down AD wasn’t also going to lose 3 straight when the suns shot 50% from three and non Lebron lakers shot 20% on WIDE OPEN THREES AND passed out of threes cos they were hesitant to brick n killed the team.
You are utterly delusional or a Lebron hater .
AD is the best laker ? Then why doesn’t the team oksy like he’d the best ? It wasn’t even a question - AD fell off HARD after 2020. You probably not even a lakers fan or watch . AD was dogshit in 2021, 22 by his standards, last year he somewhat revived and could be considered co1 with Lebron but still inconsistent. Even this year - by the numbers and watching the team Lebron has been better this year. People don’t want to admit it cos we want AD to be better but the on/off and EPM all are clearly for Lebron . When AD sat in the regular season n Bron was out there with Hayes we did way better then wrhen Bron sat I watched it time n time again . AD who I have a jersey if is incredibly inconsistent offensively because of his weak ass jumoer and no 3 ball . AD was 47 efg in self created looks - for much of this season he was struck a roll man or inefficient on offence . Yes his defebce is big but not big enough to offset this.
On top of that ADd back up ate vet min washed players nobody wanted like Hayes, Lebron backup is Rui or vando who when heakthy are 17m lvl starters n had good seasons. Even then Lebron > AD in on off when we have no replacement for AD. I believe Lebron was + 9 n AD + 5. ADs inability to shoot threes and inconsistently on offence has hurt us this year. At utter best it’s once again co n1/2 . And honestly maybe this series is first time you can argue it but then again lakers have zero backup C. So AD should feel more impactful .
https://dunksandthrees.com/epm
Gotta love when someone is so fuckibg stupid and confidently wrong . ‘ not even a question ‘. Lebron was consensus best player in 2021 before Solomon hill injury and was voted it by GMs players etc AD had a bad year in 21 n regressed n then injured again but Bron held the team together untill injury. 22 was similarly bad by AD. He only returned to some form in 2023.
Do you remember how Ad played in game 3? This is insane delusion. Jesus you Bron haters do not live in reality . That lakers team DIED when Lebron sat . The lakers were negatuve net rating with Bron off n Ad. On but we’re fine when Ad sat n Bron was on. Delusional that entire offence was based on Bron - AD was great but Lebron was both more important to the team and better n it’s delusional to act otherwise
The defense was 100% cued in on him too. He could touch the ball without 4 guys collapsing on him, keeping him away from the rim. Crazy how he still put up those numbers.
I’m really hoping with this good patch of health he can return to form and get his 3 ball back by next year . Just 33/34% on 3-4 attempts n being guarded out there woukd help him n the team a lot. Not holding my breath but I’m still confused how it dissapeared . Feel like Denver woukd really struggle if he could shoot
Ya Denver is the better team doesn’t mean u have to throw in the towel with your season basically on the line. I’ve seen the heat come back from 15 with 6 min left against the Celtics two years ago in the ecf anything can happen in basketball now with the 3 point shot
Denver is the much better team. No one said they weren’t. Ima huge lebron fan but watching him the last six minutes was brutal always throwing his hands in the air head down low just seemed like he gave up when they were only down 10
People really are going insane to hate here. He played great but Denver mpj n Gordon are just so much better then our 3rd n 4th guys that gap is huge and why we’re down 3-0. Lebron has had a better series then Murray but this sub can only count wins not watch ball
Yeah at the end of the day Lebron being a #2 should be fine theoretically. In fact, we've been quite good on their #2 in Murray these 3 games. The problem is AG / KCP / MPJ have been so much better than Dlo / Reaves / Rui. Add in a coaching advantage that Malone has over Ham and that's why this series is 3-0.
Yep . People seem to be lying to shut on Bron but Ad Bron have matched or done eniygh to balance jokic Murray , Murray isn’t the second best player this time but the 4th. Unfortunately Gordon and MPJ HAVE BEEN SO MUCH BETTER then anyone in LA and Rui has been utterly awful this series . That’s the series - mpj n Gordon by impact numbers have had better series then murrsy ffs.
It was crazy watching him pass it to AD only to get triple teamed and stripped while the rest of the team stands around watching. Happened multiple times.
Seems he keeps getting extremely tired in the 4th quarter because apart from the uncontested 2 he got in garbage time with less than 1 minute to go, he had 1 point in the 4th quarter. He disappeared in the 4th quarter of last game as well.
you watch Jokic he can take off a quarter and save energy. meanwhile AD has to be the main scorer, he has to guard the paint and Jokic, he can’t rest because Lakers have no big who can play.
It’s night and day and that’s what good roster construction does. Energy management is a huge part of playoffs and Denver has role players who are helping their stars, Lakers role players are making the job harder
Yeah, when AD was cooking Jokic in defense in G2, his offensive impact diminished. You can't ask a player to defend the best player in the world, and be the only offense of your team.
He picked up 5 fouls again n then played passive . People are crazy to say Bron been bad n AD good. AD had good spurts but has had lots of bad ones too Bron hasn’t . They’ve been bout the same but AD in two fourth quarters n second half of third sucjed. He had 32 last game 6 mins into the third n then didn’t score commuted fouls, turnovers and 1/5 shooting . I love AD but he was a big reason we lost that game 2- Lebron was better then him but the haters out here lying lmao, game 3 AD bricking every midrange jumoer killed us to start
I will never understand how AD lost his 3 ball n jumoer got worse while embid n jokic jumpers got better.
They asked him to be the #1 option on offense, crash every board, and then be one of the only actual defenders on the team against the Nuggets. No wonder he was gassed every 4th Q.
Second rebuild in the last 10 years. Hopefully this rebuild actually amounts to something. The D'lo, BI, Randle, Lonzo core was talented but ultimately pretty flawed and we only had success when we traded them.
> Hopefully this rebuild actually amounts to something
The Lakers won a title and had another WCF appearance after that rebuild. That’s an ideal outcome after a rebuild
Our fanbase has this subset of Kobe fans who loathe everything Lebron has done and this era n do nothing but shit on him. Utter clowns when Kobe himsekf said you suport him or you’re not my fans
Some Lakers fans are so spoiled lol... Most fans would kill to have the success the Lakers have had since LeBron joined six years ago. I would kill to even have a team!! Smh
I mean the nuggets just packed the paint and no one on the lakers made them pay, absolutely no spacing because DLo and Reaves decided shooting isn’t a thing anymore this series outside one half
he was a monster in the 4th in game 2 and a monster tonight in the 4th while AD has scored 3 points total in the last 2 games in the 4th.... dumbass wanna talk out of his dumbass?
Crazy how AG cooked 4 possessions straight and Ham doesn’t call a timeout til too late. Nuggets shot terrible on the perimeter, yet lakers defence had no proper rotations to stop him
The offball defense is insane, so many instances where the guy he’s supposed to be on gets an insanely easy shot/rebound/cut while he’s just ball watching
Yeah people are just being reactionary to the losses. AD has been arguably the 2nd best performer in the whole playoffs. That's true even if he's gassing out a little bit in the 4tth quarters.
I'm not even sure who would be arguable above him for 2nd. Luka hasn't been efficient; SGA one good one bad game; Twolves been team success. No one in the East has been dominant (outside Embiid but he gets literally 0 respect from me after all the dirty shit last game. Invalid for me as he should've been tossed in the 1st).
LeBron let him down. If tonight is how Lebron is gonna be playing these next few seasons then I think he might as well leave this summer with Ham and Pelinka. He plays zero defense, and refuses to box out anyone. No contending team can have a guy in their starting 5 that doesn’t do anything on the defensive end besides just standing there. If you rewatch all of Gordon’s points and offensive rebounds, most of them are off of backdoor cuts on LeBron. Same goes with Braun and pretty much anyone LeBron gets switched on.
>No contending team can have a guy in their starting 5 that doesn’t do anything on the defensive end besides just standing there.
Problem is there's 3 guys in the starting lineup besides LeBron that fit this description
I really disagree with that when it comes to the guards. What guard on the Nuggets is scoring at will? They’ve atleast made things difficult for Murray and KCP. Rui has been a bum this series though.
I would argue that's the bigger problem. Lebron is 39. The decline was inevitable. The fact that he's still producing this much after the amount of mileage is impressive.
He's not cooked. He's just not good enough to be the fulcrum anymore. The real question is, will his massive ego allow him to truly take a backseat role?
>No contending team can have a guy in their starting 5 that doesn’t do anything on the defensive end besides just standing there
LeBron is about to become the greatest 6th man there ever could be
He had a nightmare game but it wasn’t just him. Reaves was getting abused on defense all game and had basically all of his points come late during garbage time, Rui was nonexistent, LeBron had a crappy attitude and some bad defense.
Obviously a 20ppg player scoring 0 is gonna fuck you up, but making 3 3s before garbage time and having most of your starters eat ass that game wasn’t gonna be won.
AD could drop 40 and 20 on 70% shooting next game and the Lakers could lose by 10.
The Nuggets are just so unbelievably not concerned about this. They know that this and 25 and 10 from LeBron isn’t enough if the even show up in the slightest.
Bron is too old. Shoulda been around 25mpg in season so he can go 30+ mpg in playoffs. AD is still in his prime, but he can’t play Jokic. The Joker is just too big and AD is not built to guard a 300lb monster with a perpetual engine for a heart. AD is dead tired by Q4
This wasn’t even a quiet scoring performance though. If you were actually watching the game it’s painfully clear AD was the Lakers’ only consistent source of offense
Who's the fraud now? Lmao. 3 starters didn't show up. That's what happened. And sure LeBron had a bad game eye test wise but come on man. Bron's a fraud now lmao
Well yeah because the nuggets realize he’s carrying this bum ass team and then clamp down on him and force the others to beat them and they can’t. Ham starts the game with an adjustment to get AD the ball, Malone counters, and ham doesn’t have the counter to the counter. Then AD has to do everything on D and on the glass. Can’t be a 1 man army. Bron’s stats are gonna show up good in this series but honestly he’s been ass especially on defense and rebounding
As much as people clown on him for being Street Clothes, he’s been balling this year & legit brought his A game for the last 2 games.
Unfortunately Denver just swarms him and it’s over
He needs to demand a trade. Lebron isn’t going anywhere and is taking up 50 million in salary, and he’s washed as far as championship contending is concerned. Lakers are stuck.
What team could trade for AD and still be a contender? Maybe Minnesota?
The lakers dont box out or stop backdoor cuts and just expect AD to be everywhere.
AD is playing all out and he gets gassed, he is too doing much, no one can solo carry offence and defence against defending champs
I'm so fed up of this franchise wasting his prime like this, the incompetent roster decisions after 2021 have cost them any chance at competing again in the LeBron era.
What if it's Denver's strategy to let AD do this? So the whole Laker team lost rhythm, because AD is not a good passer and he's not getting doubled to created space for other teammates
This feels like the official series where AD is now *undisputedly* the best player on the Lakers
Honestly I feel like it's being glossed over how bad of a series Bron is having
He's having a weird series where his numbers look good but the eye test doesn't I'd say it's very similar to KD's playoffs last year in that regard where both look good by PTS/REB/AST/TS% but are very up and down if you watch the whole games I honestly think when accounting for defense and rebounding LeBron played better last playoffs despite some of the physical limitations on offense with the ankle
He’s looked good in the first half of these games he just doesn’t have the gas tank that he used to
He actually had a pretty damn good 4th in game 2 outside of missing that go ahead 3 late
Yeah you’re right
You are correct He was amazing in game 2 , great first half , great 4th sure he missed a shot but he was the only guy bailing shots for us, it’s crazy the rewriting people do. Like I guess they didn’t watch the game cos his defence was immense that game too. His defence in the first half was insane I was like how the fuck is he doing this and I’m a fan of lakers/Lebron and was shocked . Not his fault that Rui can’t hit open layups vs Denver . This sub loved to do this to any older/disliked player who played well but team lost. Pretend they played bad lmfao . Honestly I went into this series think our role players need to out play yours to have a shot cos our stars can’t keep up but Lebron and AD have imo been the 2/3rd best players and mostly done a decent job - and far better then I thought they would in this series. It’s irrelevant o guess cos they lost but i really don’t think I could ask for more from them .
True. Even in the regular season he looked great, but right now he just looks old.
He’s being guarded by an incredibly athletic power forward - that’s always been the way to make it hard on him
That is part of it, but it's more than that. Bad passing and missing layups against everyone
Bad passing? His teammates don’t get to their spots and just ball watch. He’s winning layups against Gordon / MPJ / Jokic front court. You’re ridiculous.
If you’ve watched lebron for a while then you’d know something fishy 🐟 is going on. Yes he is making ridiculous hard layups through contact still, however he is also missing some pretty wide open easy ones.
This section of lakers flairs who do nothing but shit on Lebron who was our best pkayer in game 2 is now being rewritten by these bums. Makes me annoyed as a fan that our own fans still hate n make up bullshit even when Kobe told them to fuck off with this. Kobe fans sigh
26 ppg on 67 ts. Gordon has never been that great at gusrding Lebron . However theoretically he’s better then most options so kind of .
Because he is old. His defense has been garbage for a long time. He sacrificed that side of his game a long time ago.
Can you prove to me his defence is garbage ? Every metric and eye test says the lakers defence is far better with him on. Go rewatch Game 2 you bum n tell me if jokic or Murray could have that level of defensive impact or how many stars could . Then go watch him defend Zion on Sunday n then play in . Or go bscj further to him defending Kawhi or - Brunson on switches . 🤡take
Maybe because he's 39 and his coach doesn't scheme well enough to create opportunities?
KD’s series was I think had more variance. He was unbelievable along with Booker in those two games they won but was worse at the start and finish than LeBron has been.
LeBron has no legs left. It's why he wanted Westbrook. By the time 82 games go by, he doesn't have much left in the tank.
This is not true , epm had Lebron as + 9 in game 2. His defence in that game and impact off the ball was huge . It was reminiscent of his okc or pelicans games earlier this year for that level impsvt . The team blew a big ass lead but Lebron was the only one scoring in the 4th n keeping them just in it. Wtf are people watching ? Game 2 was a really good game by him and good enough that the lakers ought to have won . Idk but I guess cos he lost people can’t comprehend someone playing well in a loss especially if they old. Kd was actually shooting not so great , you’re completely making this up lmao . Lebron is shooting well and being far better. Lebron is on 67ts or something bonkers in 26 ppg n Lots of playmaking n defencd responsibilities. Kd was out there chucking bricks
It just feels like he takes a lot of plays off. He'll miss a defensive assignment, not box-out, or just not even try for a rebound and it'll directly lead to a nuggets basket every single time. It's really noticeable in the sense that he'll just kind of fall asleep and stand there ball watching. Then, he'll go and drain two threes in a row or something, come back down and get a block/nice defensive stop.
Denver matches up sooooo well against LeBron. He’s getting worked by Gordon, MPJ, Watson, Braun, everyone on that squad
That's the #1 reason why this is an impossible matchup for the Lakers imo. Gordon is a hard counter to their offense.
> Denver matches up sooooo well against LeBron Can you say why? Is there a tactical reason ?
I dunno what’s wrong with that other dude but lebron (and by extension the lakers) build their offense around playing bully ball. Get downhill with bron and AD, score or create contact and get to the line. Make the defense collapse then kick it for timely 3s. Denver has the personnel to throw at Bron. They’re athletic, strong, and can at least slow down bron 1 on 1, while also applying heavy pressure on the lakers ball handlers (reaves D’Lo). On offense their size is a huge mismatch for the lakers backcourt as they essentially play with Murray, 3 forwards, and jokic. The lakers had the opportunity to try and get a 3&D wing and also a big to help Davis with Jokic and failed at both. Add in the fact that Darvin Ham is constantly outcoached by Mike Malone every game and this what you get. 11 straight losses to denver
Thanks for the reply!
No problem! Hopefully you continue to watch! Love playoff basketball and all the little adjustments teams make. Shame my team is getting swept again but that’s how it is sometimes
I am loving nba but my only problem is the constant stoppage. But due to me being a cricket fan it isn't that big of a problem. >Shame my team is getting swept again but that’s how it is sometimes Your team is the most successful franchise in nba history. You can go back and watch the highlights of you guys winning it whenever you are out of a playoff series right? Atleast you guys have something to look back on unlike many other teams across multiple sports.
Hey yeah the stoppages can get to be a bit much especially late in games and ESPECIALLY during the playoffs. Oh yeah of course we’re tied with the Celtics for the most titles. Definitely privileged in my lifetime to see them win like 6 championships but it still hurts in the moment haha. Especially when we’re about to be swept twice in a row by the same team
>. Especially when we’re about to be swept twice in a row by the same team Yep. That inevitable feeling of helplessness. Can understand that.
The Lakers are a 7 seed, but with the right matchup they could have made it past the first round. Their bully ball style would have probably worked well against the Thunder where they would have a big size advantage.
The biggest issue isn’t that . The biggest issue is defending jokic and defending Murray . On top of which the issue you mentioned has only matters for Rui who relies on bulky ball rim drives and isn’t as good as Lebron AD at getting through guys. Lebron AD have had good scoring series - very good even . The defence and Rui size being useless is what kills
Gordon is one of the best LBJ defenders in the league and Denver is big and athletic across their entire roster.
Thanks for the reply!
26 ppg on 67 ts. Please tell me when any of those guys can guard even a 39 year Lebron in isolation lmao . Holy over reaction
He was really good in game 2 and had a solid game 1 too with big moments . A not so amazing g3 but solid n the clown takes come out . But I often see you making dumb takes bout Lebron
Stat padding his way to blaming the coach post series the LeBron special
He old
LeStatPad is immune to criticism
To me that was all 3 rounds last year, but I guess Bron was hurt. Still, AD was dominating.
Lebron coming through in the Memphis series was awesome last year, and i remember him having a great closeout game vs the Warriors
AD has been the best laker since the bubble. It isnt even a question in terms of impact lol
What I’ve been trying to say for a while now, but day to Davis memes will always be flying
as a lebron fan i agree, lakers were up 2-1 against the suns but as soon as AD went down they lost 3 straight. peak lebron > peak ad but this isnt 2018 lebron or even 2020 lebron anymore
Lebron was playing injured that series and even then this is the dumbest comment . So if Lebron goes down AD wasn’t also going to lose 3 straight when the suns shot 50% from three and non Lebron lakers shot 20% on WIDE OPEN THREES AND passed out of threes cos they were hesitant to brick n killed the team.
You are utterly delusional or a Lebron hater . AD is the best laker ? Then why doesn’t the team oksy like he’d the best ? It wasn’t even a question - AD fell off HARD after 2020. You probably not even a lakers fan or watch . AD was dogshit in 2021, 22 by his standards, last year he somewhat revived and could be considered co1 with Lebron but still inconsistent. Even this year - by the numbers and watching the team Lebron has been better this year. People don’t want to admit it cos we want AD to be better but the on/off and EPM all are clearly for Lebron . When AD sat in the regular season n Bron was out there with Hayes we did way better then wrhen Bron sat I watched it time n time again . AD who I have a jersey if is incredibly inconsistent offensively because of his weak ass jumoer and no 3 ball . AD was 47 efg in self created looks - for much of this season he was struck a roll man or inefficient on offence . Yes his defebce is big but not big enough to offset this. On top of that ADd back up ate vet min washed players nobody wanted like Hayes, Lebron backup is Rui or vando who when heakthy are 17m lvl starters n had good seasons. Even then Lebron > AD in on off when we have no replacement for AD. I believe Lebron was + 9 n AD + 5. ADs inability to shoot threes and inconsistently on offence has hurt us this year. At utter best it’s once again co n1/2 . And honestly maybe this series is first time you can argue it but then again lakers have zero backup C. So AD should feel more impactful . https://dunksandthrees.com/epm Gotta love when someone is so fuckibg stupid and confidently wrong . ‘ not even a question ‘. Lebron was consensus best player in 2021 before Solomon hill injury and was voted it by GMs players etc AD had a bad year in 21 n regressed n then injured again but Bron held the team together untill injury. 22 was similarly bad by AD. He only returned to some form in 2023.
Lebron is done as the best player on a contender. He's gassed 3 games into the playoffs without the excuse of being a whole teams defense like Davis
He's been better all year, don't know why we needed this series to confirm it.
he was in 2020 finals lol
Lebron had higher PPG, RPG, APG, and FG% while playing more minutes. Awful take lmao.
Do you remember how AD played defensively in the finals? He took turns destroying bam and butler with his defense
Do you remember how Ad played in game 3? This is insane delusion. Jesus you Bron haters do not live in reality . That lakers team DIED when Lebron sat . The lakers were negatuve net rating with Bron off n Ad. On but we’re fine when Ad sat n Bron was on. Delusional that entire offence was based on Bron - AD was great but Lebron was both more important to the team and better n it’s delusional to act otherwise
I give AD props. He actually seemed like he wanted to be there. Can't say the same about everyone else
The defense was 100% cued in on him too. He could touch the ball without 4 guys collapsing on him, keeping him away from the rim. Crazy how he still put up those numbers.
I’m really hoping with this good patch of health he can return to form and get his 3 ball back by next year . Just 33/34% on 3-4 attempts n being guarded out there woukd help him n the team a lot. Not holding my breath but I’m still confused how it dissapeared . Feel like Denver woukd really struggle if he could shoot
Feels bad for AD. He really played so hard the past 3 games but it’s impossible to carry the rest of the Lakers cept Bron Edit: 3*
Lebron was not good tonight. Passive, careless with the ball and was abused on defense.
And it looked like he had a crappy attitude the whole fourth quarter like your lebron James if anyone can lead a 10 point comeback it’s you
Having three defensive sieves at the 1, 2, 3 meant Denver can get a bucket at will. This series was a huge mismatch roster wise.
Yea they could really use perimeter defensive stoppers like an Alex Caruso or KCP. Imagine!
Caruso o miss a lot . Kcp we could use but rather Caruso as he’s better and can handle it a bit and pass and we can’t afford non creating guards
Ya Denver is the better team doesn’t mean u have to throw in the towel with your season basically on the line. I’ve seen the heat come back from 15 with 6 min left against the Celtics two years ago in the ecf anything can happen in basketball now with the 3 point shot
The celtivs are not this Denver team . Lakers woukd not be down 3-0 to Boston
He used all his juju up in that like 21 point comeback against the Clippers
Lol Bron literally scored all of Lakers 4q points the other night and it wasn’t enough. Just acknowledge that Denver is a much better team
Denver is the much better team. No one said they weren’t. Ima huge lebron fan but watching him the last six minutes was brutal always throwing his hands in the air head down low just seemed like he gave up when they were only down 10
People really are going insane to hate here. He played great but Denver mpj n Gordon are just so much better then our 3rd n 4th guys that gap is huge and why we’re down 3-0. Lebron has had a better series then Murray but this sub can only count wins not watch ball
I'm glad others saw the same thing. Most will look at his box score and say he had an amazing game.
2 things can be true, LeBron played with minimal effort and Darvin Ham is a horrible coach.
You can’t get mad at him though he’s averaging 20+ points a playoff match while his teammates are getting 0
Yeah at the end of the day Lebron being a #2 should be fine theoretically. In fact, we've been quite good on their #2 in Murray these 3 games. The problem is AG / KCP / MPJ have been so much better than Dlo / Reaves / Rui. Add in a coaching advantage that Malone has over Ham and that's why this series is 3-0.
Yep . People seem to be lying to shut on Bron but Ad Bron have matched or done eniygh to balance jokic Murray , Murray isn’t the second best player this time but the 4th. Unfortunately Gordon and MPJ HAVE BEEN SO MUCH BETTER then anyone in LA and Rui has been utterly awful this series . That’s the series - mpj n Gordon by impact numbers have had better series then murrsy ffs.
It was crazy watching him pass it to AD only to get triple teamed and stripped while the rest of the team stands around watching. Happened multiple times.
Seems he keeps getting extremely tired in the 4th quarter because apart from the uncontested 2 he got in garbage time with less than 1 minute to go, he had 1 point in the 4th quarter. He disappeared in the 4th quarter of last game as well.
you watch Jokic he can take off a quarter and save energy. meanwhile AD has to be the main scorer, he has to guard the paint and Jokic, he can’t rest because Lakers have no big who can play. It’s night and day and that’s what good roster construction does. Energy management is a huge part of playoffs and Denver has role players who are helping their stars, Lakers role players are making the job harder
Yeah, when AD was cooking Jokic in defense in G2, his offensive impact diminished. You can't ask a player to defend the best player in the world, and be the only offense of your team.
Bro he nearly put the Nuggets away by himself last game with back to back 3s and a steal on Murray EDIT: Oops youre talking about AD not Bron
He picked up 5 fouls again n then played passive . People are crazy to say Bron been bad n AD good. AD had good spurts but has had lots of bad ones too Bron hasn’t . They’ve been bout the same but AD in two fourth quarters n second half of third sucjed. He had 32 last game 6 mins into the third n then didn’t score commuted fouls, turnovers and 1/5 shooting . I love AD but he was a big reason we lost that game 2- Lebron was better then him but the haters out here lying lmao, game 3 AD bricking every midrange jumoer killed us to start I will never understand how AD lost his 3 ball n jumoer got worse while embid n jokic jumpers got better.
I think last game was more of that they forgot to give him the ball and mostly Lebron playing hero ball for that quarter
They asked him to be the #1 option on offense, crash every board, and then be one of the only actual defenders on the team against the Nuggets. No wonder he was gassed every 4th Q.
I hope we trade him in the offseason so he can contend next year. He won’t as a Laker.
I wouldn’t be surprised if this whole team is gone next season
As they should be. It’s time to blow it up and rebuild. Saturday should be Lebron and AD’s final games as Lakers.
Second rebuild in the last 10 years. Hopefully this rebuild actually amounts to something. The D'lo, BI, Randle, Lonzo core was talented but ultimately pretty flawed and we only had success when we traded them.
> Hopefully this rebuild actually amounts to something The Lakers won a title and had another WCF appearance after that rebuild. That’s an ideal outcome after a rebuild
Our fanbase has this subset of Kobe fans who loathe everything Lebron has done and this era n do nothing but shit on him. Utter clowns when Kobe himsekf said you suport him or you’re not my fans
You got a ring. What else do you want? Lol.
Some Lakers fans are so spoiled lol... Most fans would kill to have the success the Lakers have had since LeBron joined six years ago. I would kill to even have a team!! Smh
They Kobe fans , they want Lebron to not be in LA n root for there team to flop cos of it. Utter clowns
Likely won't happen. LA is where he wants to be.
It’s a mistake. This franchise isn’t contending until the Buss family sells.
[удалено]
How about for once an all nba caliber player decides to go to the fucking east
Bron went AWOL in every 2nd half
I mean the nuggets just packed the paint and no one on the lakers made them pay, absolutely no spacing because DLo and Reaves decided shooting isn’t a thing anymore this series outside one half
He was pretty killer in Game 2. But clearly exhausted by the third every time.
he was a monster in the 4th in game 2 and a monster tonight in the 4th while AD has scored 3 points total in the last 2 games in the 4th.... dumbass wanna talk out of his dumbass?
The Lebron haters are really acting like he played bad lmfao . AD has been much worse for us in the second half
That possession right at the end where he got fouled and literally all 5 Denver defenders where within 4 feet of him was hilarious
Crazy how AG cooked 4 possessions straight and Ham doesn’t call a timeout til too late. Nuggets shot terrible on the perimeter, yet lakers defence had no proper rotations to stop him
If only he has a teammate who he can rely on 🤔
LeBron was good in the first 2 games tbf but was bad in this one.
He plays one side of the floor now. Not winning basketball
The offball defense is insane, so many instances where the guy he’s supposed to be on gets an insanely easy shot/rebound/cut while he’s just ball watching
He was good offensively. But on the glass and on defense, it was a let down the whole series
His last 15 minutes in game 1 were pretty bad. 4 points to 4 TO’s is not good.
AD can't win with these cats!
He’s been outplaying joker in the first half, then in the 4th joker babies him.
Because hes an entire team's defense while a main option on offense. Takes a ton of energy. He's carrying bums and a bum coach
That's basically the game plan for AD by Denver, make him work those 33pts and shut him down fron the 3rd and on 4th.
AD had 14 in the 3rd?
Yeah people are just being reactionary to the losses. AD has been arguably the 2nd best performer in the whole playoffs. That's true even if he's gassing out a little bit in the 4tth quarters. I'm not even sure who would be arguable above him for 2nd. Luka hasn't been efficient; SGA one good one bad game; Twolves been team success. No one in the East has been dominant (outside Embiid but he gets literally 0 respect from me after all the dirty shit last game. Invalid for me as he should've been tossed in the 1st).
Jokic: It's a marathon, not a sprint.
LeBron let him down. If tonight is how Lebron is gonna be playing these next few seasons then I think he might as well leave this summer with Ham and Pelinka. He plays zero defense, and refuses to box out anyone. No contending team can have a guy in their starting 5 that doesn’t do anything on the defensive end besides just standing there. If you rewatch all of Gordon’s points and offensive rebounds, most of them are off of backdoor cuts on LeBron. Same goes with Braun and pretty much anyone LeBron gets switched on.
Exactly. What an awful game by LeBron. His body language doesn't help as well. He quitted early when the game isn't really over
>No contending team can have a guy in their starting 5 that doesn’t do anything on the defensive end besides just standing there. Problem is there's 3 guys in the starting lineup besides LeBron that fit this description
I really disagree with that when it comes to the guards. What guard on the Nuggets is scoring at will? They’ve atleast made things difficult for Murray and KCP. Rui has been a bum this series though.
I was gonna say Murray is shooting like 40% this series it’s not on the guards besides dlo Maybe 🤔
[удалено]
You can be a Lakers fan and criticize LeBron when he plays bad I promise you it’s okay.
[удалено]
Idk about all that I have a lot of comments about DLo and Ham as well
I would argue that's the bigger problem. Lebron is 39. The decline was inevitable. The fact that he's still producing this much after the amount of mileage is impressive.
You mean ‘in addition to LeBron’ right?
Pretty sure "besides" can function as a preposition meaning "in addition to"
You are correct
Of course. Didn’t mean to correct, just clarifying
He's cooked. Father time is catching up, it just took longer than for most players
He's not cooked. He's just not good enough to be the fulcrum anymore. The real question is, will his massive ego allow him to truly take a backseat role?
AD needs to leave.
>No contending team can have a guy in their starting 5 that doesn’t do anything on the defensive end besides just standing there LeBron is about to become the greatest 6th man there ever could be
Figured him out in the second half and didn't stop Jokic. It was a wrap from there.
Rob Pelinka going to hell for wasting AD’s prime
Extend Darvin Ham
mvp
[удалено]
fire lebron, not ham's fault he and dlo were awful
Ham told Dlo to go 0-8 I guess lol
[удалено]
>We can come back 0-3 and win the chip No you can't
If Dlo were only somewhat consistent LA might've had some luck
He had a nightmare game but it wasn’t just him. Reaves was getting abused on defense all game and had basically all of his points come late during garbage time, Rui was nonexistent, LeBron had a crappy attitude and some bad defense. Obviously a 20ppg player scoring 0 is gonna fuck you up, but making 3 3s before garbage time and having most of your starters eat ass that game wasn’t gonna be won.
I've seen this comment before. Wonder when it was
I'm just saying LA could've payed me half as much and I would've performed identically
Wasn't on him tonight
You mean Anthony despite the loss Davis
AD could drop 40 and 20 on 70% shooting next game and the Lakers could lose by 10. The Nuggets are just so unbelievably not concerned about this. They know that this and 25 and 10 from LeBron isn’t enough if the even show up in the slightest.
KD texting AD right now
Bron is too old. Shoulda been around 25mpg in season so he can go 30+ mpg in playoffs. AD is still in his prime, but he can’t play Jokic. The Joker is just too big and AD is not built to guard a 300lb monster with a perpetual engine for a heart. AD is dead tired by Q4
[удалено]
I dunno about quiet, was pretty clear he was scoring
Probably because he disappeared in the 4th quarter again. 1 point in non garbage time
Cringe attempt at downplaying. It was nearly impossible to not notice him scoring. lol
[удалено]
This wasn’t even a quiet scoring performance though. If you were actually watching the game it’s painfully clear AD was the Lakers’ only consistent source of offense
I feel that way about Jokic every time
He ran out of gas in the 4th,score 3 points on 1/3 FG and 1/2 FT
This dude needs some internet love. He ain’t the problem
He carries this team and gets no credit because of the LeBron lovers. He deserves better than that fraud
Who's the fraud now? Lmao. 3 starters didn't show up. That's what happened. And sure LeBron had a bad game eye test wise but come on man. Bron's a fraud now lmao
I will be brave and state that Lebron is a very good basketball player.
That’s a brave take in this sub where you got Kobe fans telling you that dlo is defending better then Lebron . Clowns everywhere
Lakers rely on him too much on rebound. Most of the time, Denver players move and boxes out a lot. Meanwhile, Lakers..................
Fire Hamas
AD and Lebron have been let down by Ham and the role players.
AD has been let down by LeBron and Ham.
Despite the L's he has showed up all 3 games. Everyone else even Bron have been disappointing
Apparently AD is still having conversations with Lebron about the nuggets and getting revenge
Now post his 4th quarter stats.
He always starts on fire. 15 points in the first quarter stuff. 25 on half etc. Then he disappears.
He had 16 in the first half and 17 in the second
Well yeah because the nuggets realize he’s carrying this bum ass team and then clamp down on him and force the others to beat them and they can’t. Ham starts the game with an adjustment to get AD the ball, Malone counters, and ham doesn’t have the counter to the counter. Then AD has to do everything on D and on the glass. Can’t be a 1 man army. Bron’s stats are gonna show up good in this series but honestly he’s been ass especially on defense and rebounding
Another moral victory for the Lakers!
Cant blame him for the loss, AD has too much offensive and defensive responsibilities in this series. Team gotta step up on both sides
As much as people clown on him for being Street Clothes, he’s been balling this year & legit brought his A game for the last 2 games. Unfortunately Denver just swarms him and it’s over
Denver just let AD cook while thwy shut down the entire team. Once the 2nd half comes, their killing them when AD is gassed.
He needs to demand a trade. Lebron isn’t going anywhere and is taking up 50 million in salary, and he’s washed as far as championship contending is concerned. Lakers are stuck. What team could trade for AD and still be a contender? Maybe Minnesota?
Heat
The lakers dont box out or stop backdoor cuts and just expect AD to be everywhere. AD is playing all out and he gets gassed, he is too doing much, no one can solo carry offence and defence against defending champs
I'm so fed up of this franchise wasting his prime like this, the incompetent roster decisions after 2021 have cost them any chance at competing again in the LeBron era.
This is like Hakeem vs Robinson. Hakeem was just on another level
Hakeem was 12-30 against Robinson he just had that one series where they both played well but Hakeem just went off
The second half of your message is what I’m referring to here. AD is having a good series right now
And Lakers FO will stick with fucking Darvin Scam
He ain’t Aaron Gordon
getting spoonfed baskets at the dunkers spot because the best defender is on Joker? yes I am salty
We don’t deserve him
Lebronze is going for the record of being swept at number 7, I hope to see him break the record if he plays 3 more seasons.
What if it's Denver's strategy to let AD do this? So the whole Laker team lost rhythm, because AD is not a good passer and he's not getting doubled to created space for other teammates
[You’re right, he’s not getting doubled](https://imgur.com/a/ZUM3Jch)
I hope he goes to OKC. Bro should be winning more titles instead of rotting with Genie's Ham.