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WATCH: Furious LeBron James Taunts Michael Malone & Nuggets Bench On Live TV As Lakers Look To Survive

Published 04/22/2024, 11:09 PM EDT

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USA Today via Reuters

The Los Angeles Lakers entered Game 2 against the Denver Nuggets with a sting and huge voids to leap over. LeBron James stared down Jamal Murray after a huge block at the rim and the Lakers, like the previous game, ended the first quarter with a lead. With that, as the Lakers began holding the Nuggets from the anticipated comeback, James sparked the beginning of a hollywood’esque storyline (decided after the series’ conclusion, obviously).

James saw the potential mismatch and drove to the lane past Murray in the opening minute of the second quarter. As Murray tried to swat the ball off James’ hands, he was whistled for a foul against LeBron’s missed shot. A furious Murray displayed his frustration at the call while the Denver bench added numbers to echo the same. With that, LeBron James, unbothered by the mass, indulged in a verbal spat with Denver’s head coach Michael Malone and the arguing roster.

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So far, Murray has managed to emerge on top of the exchanges shared with James in the playoffs. One instance is his MJ-like layup over James, while another is the contested 3 from the previous year which forced James to tip his hat to Murray.

Now, as Jamal sneaked a drive-by dunk in Game 1 on Saturday, it seems like James took the floor tonight with a vendetta. After a huge block in the first quarter, James proceeded to reject Murray on a midrange jumper a few moments later after the verbal battle with Denver. With that, James bullyingly drove to the basket, garnering an and1 and flexing to the fans.

Murray still had the final word against LeBron James

Thanks to James’ pressure early on, Jamal Murray struggled throughout the game. He was held to 18 points, 5 assists, and 3 rebounds. Until the final seconds of the game came through. Jamal had the ball with seconds left of the clock and the Lakers leading 99-98. In, what came to be a last-possession game, Murray drove inside the lane against Anthony Davis, only to sidestep and hit a heartbreaking dagger at the Lakers Nation, winning the game 101-99.

As the Ball Arena roared in celebration, Murray’s fadeaway saw him on the ground right in front of his team’s bench.

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I just beat him to the spot, beat him to my spot, elevated, went through my shot and I’m thankful enough that was one of the few that went down for me,” Murray summarized his game-winner on the night that saw him go 9-24 from the field (0-5 from three).

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The Lakers blew a 20-point lead in the second half. Luckily, D’Angelo Russell stepped up to bash the notions around his underperformance, posting 23 points through his 7 three-pointers. However, he was only one of the three players touching the double-digit mark for the purple and gold. On the other hand, Denver, despite Jamal’s struggles, saw 5 players doing notching the same.

The two teams will now head to LA for a Game 3 and 4 showdown in the Crypto.com arena. Despite the home-court advantage, the pressure remains on the Lakers to get their first win against Denver in the last 10 games!

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Written by:

Saahil Dhillan

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Saahil Dhillan is an NBA Writer at EssentiallySports who discovered his basketball passion through the dynamic between Miami's LeBron James and Dwyane Wade. Years later, Kobe Bryant reignited his love, transforming him into an extensive contributor who savors the matches, covers games live, analyzes post-game pressers, and reports on injuries. With his stories, he aims at making readers feel the intense drama unfolding on the court every day.
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Edited by:

Daniel D'Cruz