The Joker Has The Last Laugh: Story of the Series
The Los Angeles Lakers have been eliminated from the 2024 NBA playoffs. What does the future hold for both teams going forward? Read on to find out
What can I say about this series that hasn’t already been said a thousand times in a thousand tongues?
Going into this series we knew the team from the mile high city was miles better than the Los Angeles Lakers. For years, L.A has relied heavily on two pillars: LeBron James and Anthony Davis. Two superstars who when they’re on the floor, give their team a decent chance to win against just about any team the league has to offer. But what happens when those two pillars start to crack and crumble? What happens when the foundation under them that is meant to support them in kind is constantly shifting thanks to management that doesn’t seem to know what it’s doing? And what happens when you run into the same team that swept you last year with ease?
If you’re the Lakers, it means you reach the end of your playoff road in the first round.
Game 1 was the kind of game I expected to be honest. The Lakers jump out to an early lead due in no small part to their imposing frontcourt duo of LeBron James and Anthony Davis, but the Nuggets stay in striking distance just long enough to see their opponent wear out. In the second half the teams duked it out for a while before Denver took the lead with around four minutes to go and never looked back. Even with a good game all around by the Lakers, they are not good enough to stop the reigning champions from taking the first game in the series.
Game 2 was a nailbiter that went all the way to the final buzzer, ending with a sensational shot from Jamal Murray who by this point is not just one of the best guards in the league, but one of the best players, full stop. Despite having a 20 point lead at one point, the Lakers couldn’t stave off their opponent. Some may argue that the Lakers have the better one-two punch in Davis and James. But that’s assuming they’re both healthy and playing at their best. Even then, it bears repeating that the Lakers are betting on a man nearing 40 and a man in his 30s with a bad injury record. I’ll touch on this more later but to be brief, that is not the kind of bet you want to make, especially up against a team who not only have their own great one-two, but a bevy of complimentary pieces around them that can hurt you just as bad if you let them.
Game 3 was a repeat of game 1. We don’t need to spend too much time dissecting the same pattern twice. Which brought us to game four, where I fully expected the Lakers to be sent home, only to be shocked as the game was essentially decided in the first quarter in retrospect. After taking the lead, the Lakers would not allow Denver the chance to even tie it up for the rest of the game, making a statement in game 4, blowing out the defending champs. This game gave some of the Laker faithful hope. Even if they were down 0–3 before this result, maybe they could pull a miracle out. If anyone could do it, surely it could be LeBron James, the man who’s been outrunning Father Time for over 20 years.
But then game 5 happened, and the ember of hope was snuffed out in Denver Colorado. In another game that went down to the final buzzer, Jamal Murray would once again rise to the occasion, hitting a go-ahead basket with less than four seconds left. With no timeouts left, the Lakers would heave up a prayer. But no miracle would come down on them. And with that, the Nuggets would advance past the Lakers to the second round, where the Minnesota Timberwolves await.
If we’re being honest with ourselves, are any of us really surprised with this result? I don’t think even diehard Lakers fans felt they had a genuine chance to beat this team. Because to be frank, the same flaws that would end up being their demise last year at the hands of the Nuggets would end up being the same ones that would end their postseason this year, only much earlier on. The Nuggets are the exact type of team that is a genuine contender at bare minimum. A pair of star players, surrounded by a team that compliments their strengths, and a coach that knows how to best utilize the team. The Nuggets are a team that has no glaring flaws, no obvious crack in their armour. They aren’t a team that shoots poorly, nor are they a team with a lacking interior presence, nor are they an offense-only team, nor are they a defensive juggernaut that struggles to get buckets. Few teams are ever as good as advertised. But the Nuggets are that damn good.
Conversely, the ‘Lakeshow’ has continued to be a saga of drama, turmoil, and tragedy. For the life of me, I cannot understand why this team insists on fixing things that aren’t broken, and then breaking them further in an attempt to fix the already existing problems. In 2020 this team was a champion that hung its hat on defensive mindedness and a solid supporting cast that could space the floor and pass the ball which allowed LeBron and Davis to pick their spots more regularly. Immediately after winning, the team shed most of its frontcourt and made the baffling decision to acquire a ‘third star’ in Russell Westbrook. Immediately the team went from a champion to comedy act. And from that moment this team has continuously seen its roster and personnel change. For as good as its stars are, no team can hope to win a five-on-five game when only two of their players are reliable.
I don’t know where the Lakers go from here. I have an idea of where they should go, i.e surrounding LeBron with talent that can compete and win now while the King still has time left in the league. And if they can’t do that, I’d suggest they go into full ‘rebuild mode’ and trade their stars while they have decent value. As much as it is unfathomable for a team to trade players like LeBron, you have to do what you have to do. Unfortunately this front office has proven time and time again that they will always ignore the reality staring them in the face and opt for the most nonsensical path possible, with the results ranging from glaring mediocrity to outright chaos. What will most likely happen is they continue to waste the remaining time they have LeBron on the team until he either heads elsewhere or retires. Which is a damn shame.
But alas, history repeats itself when man fails to heed its warning.
This series was like listening to the same broken record you tried to enjoy last year. Maybe it didn’t hiccup and freeze as much as the last time you tried to play it. Maybe it even sounded a bit better a year removed. But it still stutters exactly where and when you’d expect. It coughs and sputters through the notes that were once smooth and melodic. And ultimately you turn it off and find a new record to play in place of one that has become a shell of itself.
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