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“Lakers Loss Isn’t LeBron or AD’s Fault”: Magic Johnson Shifts the Blame After Nuggets Take Game 1

Published 04/20/2024, 11:51 PM EDT

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Magic Johnson is back on Twitter with a detailed analysis of Game 1 between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Denver Nuggets. This tight Western Conference match-up is the talk on the internet at the moment, as the Lakers lost a 12-point lead to Nikola Jokic and Co. Fans are blasting a few stars on the Lakers, but Magic Johnson does not want the netizens to blame LeBron James or Anthony Davis for the loss. He has two other young stars in his mind who didn’t show up on the night.

The 5x champion wrote on Twitter, “This Lakers loss isn’t LeBron or AD’s fault. Just like I said the other day…the guards had to play well – and they didn’t.” Johnson was not entertained to watch D’Angelo Russell or Austin Reaves, who delivered underwhelming performances. Johnson shared, Dlo was 1/9 from the 3-point line, Reaves was quiet most of the game, and they only combined for 26 points. Johnson’s analysis did not end here. He also highlighted another crucial flaw in the Lakers. 

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The 3x MVP shared another tweet, “The 18 Nuggets points off offensive rebounds hurt the Lakers, but the momentum completely changed in the 3rd quarter when Dlo made that transition turnover which led to a Nuggets basket. He then missed a layup that would’ve put the Lakers up 5, and instead, the Nuggets tied the game and they never recovered.” Once again, the blame was pinned on Russell, who scored only 13 points today, which is a reason why the Nuggets took the lead comfortably. 

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Magic Johnson has never hesitated to highlight the flaws in the game. Especially when it is his favorite Lakers, the criticism is more harsh and accurate. Russell and Reaves were the scapegoats today. Johnson also highlighted the good performances, and that is how Nikola Jokic made it to his tweet. 

Magic Johnson chooses his MVP after Nikola Jokic’s near triple-double

The Joker takes every series in the playoffs one by one. The dominant numbers are a constant anyhow. He led the offense as usual to finish with 32 points, 12 rebounds, and 7 assists, which was good enough to outplay Anthony Davis, who had 32 as well. Johnson was impressed with the Serbian center’s versatile display. He tweeted“Jokic, who I believe will win the MVP award, had another unstoppable performance tonight, with 32/12/7!”, making his choice for the most anticipated award. 

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USA Today via Reuters

In NBA.com’s MVP ladder, Jokic is at the top of the table, although Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has led OKC to the first seed in the Western Conference. The Thunder point guard is in second place, followed by Luka Doncic from the Dallas Mavericks. Many have endorsed Jokic to win his 3rd MVP, and now Magic Johnson is one of them!

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Written by:

Rohan Dharmalingam

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Rohan Dharmalingam is an NBA beat writer at EssentiallySports, who extensively covers the Lakers. Be it a multimillion dollar deal breaking or a classic throwback, Rohan has covered the many themes and formats. Most notably, his coverage received a shoutout from the Purple & Gold icon Shaquille O'Neal and the rap legend 50 Cent, on Instagram.
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Edited by:

Pragya Vashisth