Nuggets’ playoff defeat over the Lakers reminds us of past runs..
The Lakers lost 101-99 to the Nuggets on Monday night, despite leading by as many as 20 points, and now trail 2-0 in a Western Conference playoff series that began in the first round. Jamal Murray sprinted down the court and beat Anthony Davis with a 15-foot game-winning 3-pointer after LeBron James missed one. Even though the Lakers will return home for Game 3, this defeat adds another mark to their dismal record against the Nuggets.
The Lakers are actually on a six-game losing streak in the playoffs versus Nikola Jokic and company, or ten games if you include the regular season. Even though Los Angeles is already up against it in the playoffs, things are about to get much worse when an obstacle in the form of a Nugget gets in the way.
Remarkably, this isn’t even close to the longest losing run a team has had in the playoffs over the previous 20 years. Occasionally, a team simply owns the number of another squad; as you’ll see, this previous team usually features LeBron.
The 2008-09 Cavaliers swept the Hawks in the Eastern Conference semifinals. LeBron James then left for the Miami Heat, marking the end of that particular nightmare for Atlanta.
Until he came back.
James picked up where he left off, sweeping the Hawks in the Eastern Conference finals in the 2014-15 season. He’d do it again in the 2015-16 Eastern Conference semifinals. The Cavaliers haven’t played the Hawks in the playoffs since then, meaning this streak is technically still ongoing.
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