There were several reasons the Los Angeles Lakers lost, 114-103, to the Denver Nuggets in Game 1 of their first-round playoff series on Saturday. D’Angelo Russell shot 6-of-20. Only three Lakers players attempted double-digit shot attempts. They were outplayed in terms of rebounding, second-chance points and fast-break points.
But one could also argue LeBron James was another reason for the loss. While he turned in 27 efficient points and eight assists, he also had seven turnovers. In addition, he went most of the fourth quarter without attempting a single shot after starting the game so well.
Skip Bayless took to X (formerly known as Twitter) to accuse James of pouting, possibly because of the criticism that he isn’t a great crunch-time player (h/t Athlon Sports).
I just watched LeBron pout for the last 9 minutes of the game.pic.twitter.com/b3r66QSI7g
— Skip Bayless (@RealSkipBayless) April 21, 2024
“LeBron James can be such a diva,” said Bayless in his postgame social media rant. “I just watched him play the last nine minutes at Denver, and take two shots once the game was completely over because he wanted to make a point.
“He pouted those last nine minutes because he was so stung by the criticism … all of it justified … for his fourth-quarter flame-outs last year in the conference finals against Denver. So, he just stood around on offense watching and kicking the ball to the coldest hand on the floor D’Angelo Russell.”
After trailing by as many as 15 points in the fourth period, L.A. drew within six points with 6:15 left. Yet even with an opportunity to pull out a victory, James was still passive.
Bayless has always been outspoken in his criticism of James, whom a growing number of people think is the greatest basketball player ever. The journalist points to James’ checkered history with big games on the line as the reason he doesn’t think the four-time MVP is the greatest in NBA history.
“How can anybody watch something like that and think this guy was the GOAT?” Bayless continued. “Do you think Kobe (Bryant) would have done that? Do you think (Michael) Jordan would have done that? It was just an embarrassment. … It was just so LeBron James.”
James can at least somewhat enhance his argument that he’s No. 1 in the history of the sport by leading the Lakers to a victory in this series. But he needs to improve his decision-making and be more assertive offensively in at key junctures when control of a game is there for the taking.
