Lakers News: History Is Very, Very Against LA Rallying From 0-3 Series Deficit

Why the Lakers' season is looking all but over.

Apr 25, 2024; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James drives toward the hoop against Denver Nuggets forward Aaron Gordon. / Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports

After falling 112-105 at home at Crypto.com Arena on Thursday night, the No. 7-seeded Los Angeles Lakers find themselves on the verge of suffering a second straight playoff sweep against the No. 2-seeded Denver Nuggets.

Despite the ongoing first round playoff series switching from the hostile terrain of Denver to the friendlier confines Los Angeles for Game 3, the Lakers proved powerless to prevent the Nuggets from rallying back from a double-digit deficit (and an LA halftime lead) for the third straight game. The Lakers could not buy a bucket from three point range, going just 5-of-27 from deep (18.5%). Nuggets forwards Aaron Gordon and Michael Porter Jr. stepped up, the former by attacking the glass with relentless ferocity and the latter by unleashing a litany of impressive jumpers.

Per Mike Bresnahan of Spectrum News, no NBA team has previously rallied back from an 0-3 deficit in league history, across 151 tries. The Lakers of course will at least try to change that tally from 0-151 to 1-151, starting with a must-win Game 4 on Saturday.

“Those guys make tough shot after tough shot after tough shot,” LeBron James reflected, per Bresnahan. “They do not have a weakness offensively.”

Four Nuggets starters scored 20+ points (only old friend Kentavious Caldwell Pope had a modest night on offense). Three of those starters enjoyed 20+ point double-doubles: Gordon (29 points on 12-of-18 shooting and 15 rebounds, plus three assists and a steal), Jokic (24 points on 9-of-13 shooting and 15 rebounds, along with nine assists and a steal), and Porter (20 points on 8-of-16 shooting and 10 rebounds, plus three assists).

Only three Lakers scored over eight points: James (26 points on 12-of-20 shooting), center Anthony Davis (33 points on 14-of-23 shooting), and shooting guard Austin Reaves (who submitted his first good game of the series, scoring 22 points on 8-of-17 shooting). Starters Rui Hachimura and D'Angelo Russell were incredibly disappointing. Russell couldn't buy a bucket, scoring zero points on 0-of-7 shooting from the floor (he refused to talk to reporters postgame). Hachimura had just five points. Head coach Darvin Ham benched the duo in favor of Taurean Prince (for Hachimura) and Spencer Dinwiddie (for Russell) down the stretch of the fourth quarter, although it did nothing to save LA.

So can the Lakers buck NBA history and actually rally back? Every journey starts with a single step, and that step will have to be taken Saturday.

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