The defending champs are officially rolling on their quest for a back-to-back championship. Just like the handful of recent matchups with the Los Angeles Lakers, they teased the game past halftime, only to grip it near the 4th quarter. However, it seemed like the next game could see a different storyline, as LeBron James witnessed a heart-wrenching moment during the final minutes.

As the Lakers struggled to find the net, LeBron drove to the basket with a heavy contest by Aaron Gordon. James went for his layup, and he misstepped on Gordon’s right foot, crashing to the floor and hurting his elbow. The 4x MVP stayed on the floor, working through the pain before his teammates carefully helped him get back up. Despite the hard fall, it seemed like James was unfazed, as he swung back with an easy layup around Jokic in the next play.

With that, and no concerns radiated around his elbow or ankle in the post-game, it seems like James will not be seen on the Lakers’ injury report. Regardless, the Lakers still have plenty to worry about. Their first playoff game of the season added to Denver’s recent dominance over them. They are now 0-9 against Nikola Jokic‘s squad, and nowhere near matching their on-court synergy. With that, and an opportunity to repair the Denver dent on his legacy, the timeline forces LeBron James to dive deep into his globally celebrated basketball wisdom.

LeBron James’ stats vs Denver Nuggets in Game 1

In his 21-year NBA career, tonight was just the fourth time LeBron James lost a playoff opener. Moreover, as several analysts and fans predicted the same, the game began on a contrasting note. The Lakers came loaded, immediately giving the Nuggets an answer for every bucket, posting a 12-point lead.

However, as Denver’s fluid offense steadily found the cracks in the Lakers’ defense, James put up a 32-foot buzzer-beater to end the half, barely edging the Lakers to a 3-point lead.

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LeBron James had 19 points at the half and finished the game with 27 points; scoring only 8 points in the latter 24 minutes of the game. While Darvin Ham denied knowing the reason behind James’ diminished involvement in the second half, the coach assumed it might be to provide his teammates with confident touches.

Nevertheless, with the impact James has had on the Lakers, it is easy to consider that his mere 6 attempts in the second half factored heavily into the final score. Now, the Lakers’ chances to proceed to the second round sink more than ever. With that, they only have a handful of hours to work through their game approach before Monday night’s Game 2 in the same arena.