On May 17, Beijing time, in this game, James was 9 of 16, scored 26 points, 12 rebounds and 9 assists, and made a key mistake in the last 18 seconds, and left the game directly after losing, his face was livid. It is worth mentioning that he hit the 91st 20+10+5 of his career, more than the next three combined (74).
This is the 12th time in James' career that he has won 41 series, the first in history, and in the first two playoff rounds, he averaged 23.4 points, 10 rebounds, 5.3 assists and 1.3 blocks per game, and was the oldest player in NBA history to average at least 20 points, 10 rebounds and 5 assists per game in a single playoff game (38 years, 137 days).
In the face of the Nuggets, in the case of the Lakers being blasted out by the opponent 22-9 at the beginning, James stood up in time, he integrated attack and defense, counterattacked to break through the layup, strong crush under the basket, and also sent the signature fast-break chasing cap, directly fanning Brown's layup.
At halftime, James played 19 minutes, shooting 5-of-8 from the field, 0-of-1 from three-point range, 1-of-2 from the free throw line, and scored 11 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists and 1 block, with a plus-minus of -12.
Coming back in the second half, the Nuggets continued to suppress the Lakers, and James finished the third quarter on 8-of-12 shooting, already scoring 19 points, 8 rebounds and 5 assists. Interestingly, in the fourth quarter, when James defended Murray, who hit a magical three-point shot, James Sr. directly gave a thumbs up and gave the other party a thumbs up.
However, the Lakers did not give up, and with 3:53 left, James hit one of two free throws, and they chased only 6 points. Subsequently, James assisted Reeves on a three-point shot, and the Lakers chased only 3 points. Unfortunately, in the final 18 seconds, James was cut off from a fatal error.