The Los Angeles Lakers have advanced to the NBA Finals once again after 10 years. LeBron James becomes the fourth player to reach the finals 10 times in 3 different teams.
Despite the Denver Nuggets having a great run by coming back in 3-1 deficits, it looks like the Los Angeles Lakers have spoiled their comeback streak. LeBron James has proven himself once again with his leadership and still strong in his 17th year in the NBA.
LeBron James (Cleveland Cavaliers, Miami Heat, Los Angeles Lakers) is now the only player in NBA History to average 25+ PPG in the postseason heading into the NBA Finals with three different teams. pic.twitter.com/cuq7OZwfra
— NBA.com/Stats (@nbastats) September 27, 2020
The King recorded another monster triple-double with 38 points, 16 rebounds, and 10 assists in a 117-107 Game 5 victory against the Denver Nuggets. Anthony Davis also had a good game contributing 27 points.
Denver Nuggets still had a great season despite the loss
With the King erasing the comeback kids’ 3-1 streak, fans shouldn’t be disappointed with the performance of the Nuggets because they really gave the Lakers a hard-fought series. The Joker Nikola Jokic had 20 points, 8 assists, and 4 rebounds.
Jamal Murray still played his heart out in 43 minutes playing time in Game 5 despite his hobbling on the floor as he told ESPN when asked about his 19 point performance:
“I have a big bruise on my foo […] Just hurt me all game. I changed shoes, and that didn’t help. Yeah, I have a bone bruise [as well]. I don’t like to tell everybody what I got. I just like to play through it. I was in pain, but it’s cool. I was out there. I was struggling a little bit today.”
Next season should be interesting for this club as well since they have seen some great potential in their supporting cast. Jerami Grant gave his all trying to defend the two best stars of the Los Angeles Lakers and had almost a double-double with 20 points and 9 rebounds.
Let’s also not forget the fact that the Nuggets squad didn’t have players with a high draft pick value during the rebuilding process aside from Jamal Murray.
Murray became the 7th 1st round pick back in 2014 while both Nikola Jokic and Jerami Grant started out as 2nd round draft picks. Nuggets fans should be proud of the second unit’s development of Michael Porter Jr. and possibly Bol Bol next season.
LeBron James: We’re not done yet
However, despite making his 10th finals appearance, the King still has some work to do — and that is to win a championship. He shrugged off his accomplishment of making another NBA finals appearance saying that the job’s not done.
The Los Angeles Lakers are set to wait on who they will face. The Boston Celtics right now are trying to pull off comeback wins to force a Game 7 against the Miami Heat after winning Game 5.
As for King James, he has to win this year if he wants to silence his haters and continue on to push the legacy of the black mamba, Kobe Bryant.
Featured image courtesy of Los Angeles Lakers/YouTube Thumbnail