The Los Angeles Lakers have started successive series with a loss. In a one-sided affair, the Lakers slumped to a 15 point loss in Game 1 of the Western Conference Semifinals. One of the biggest reasons they lost was LeBron James not stepping up when his team needed him.

The Lakers entered into the fourth quarter, trailing behind by six points. Instead of showing an initiative to lead the team out of the deficit, LeBron was absent in the whole quarter. He played nine of the 12 minutes and managed a whopping zero points, zero assists, and one rebound. He took just three shots and missed each time.

Can LeBron James improve in the second game?

LeBron excels in driving and finishing strongly to the rim, but he refused to play to his strengths. Instead, he tried to shoot his way out of trouble but ended up going 2/7 from the three-point line.

Throughout the game, he took just 15 shots and five free-throws. When leading a team that is losing, he should have focused more on scoring himself rather than looking out for the open man. This is the same thing that happened in Game 1 against the Blazers where he had a good individual game, but his pass-first mentality eventually led to a defeat.

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Even Anthony Davis took just 16 shots, allowing strugglers like Danny Green to end up with 12 shots. For the Rockets, their two leaders racked up the shots. James Harden took 20 shots, converting 12 while Russell Westbrook had 24 shots converting 10 out of it. This leadership is what took them to a win tonight.

In the series against the Blazers, the Lakers took Game 1 as a warmup, before going all out in the rest of the games. Lakers fans will be hoping that this was a wake-up call for their team, and LeBron and co can step up the upcoming games in the series. Being the favorites, they’re expected to do better.