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The 38-year-old James didn't lose to his opponent, he just lost to time

The 38-year-old James didn't lose to his opponent, he just lost to time

For the Lakers, starting with G4, all they think about is how to win more games, at least not today by the Nuggets' humiliating sweep. Hamm finally changed his lineup, starting with Russell and Van der Biao, and replacing Schroeder and Hachimura.

At a moment when there is almost no hope of promotion, it is of course a bit of a "child is dead, milk is coming" meaning of "the child is dead, the milk is coming", but it is better than doing nothing. The effect of this starting lineup is obvious, at least the Lakers are no longer passive at the beginning.

The 38-year-old James didn't lose to his opponent, he just lost to time

After the opening, Schroder and Hachimura both scored, Schroder is more dynamic than Russell on both ends of the offensive and defensive ends, and the height of Hachimura can also give the Lakers more rebounds. On the defensive end, the Lakers opted for a more extreme approach.

Don't give Murray and Jokic the two cores an easy shot, for the other three people can put it down. The result of this was Pope's three-point hit in the first quarter, but the Nuggets went 0-of-8 from three.

Hachimura came up to defend Jokic, which gave James a lot of breathing room on the defensive end, and the chain reaction was that James could focus more on the offensive end. Of course, from the first quarter, James's energy on the offensive end was "excessive".

The 38-year-old James didn't lose to his opponent, he just lost to time

After the empty catch for Hachimura turned into a three-pointer, James's hand seemed to open. Shooting 7-of-9 from the field and 4-of-4 from three-point range for 21 points in the first quarter, how long has it been since you saw James who was 20+ in a single quarter. In the first three games, James was 3-of-19 from three-point range and 0-of-10 from the first two games. Today, James' three-point score in the first quarter exceeded the three-point score in the first three games.

Of course, compared to James' performance of 31 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists and 2 steals, 11 of 13 and 4 three-pointers in the half, James was more moving in that he only took a break of 4.3 seconds in the half.

With 4.3 seconds left at halftime, James took off his shirt and walked back to the locker room to regain his fitness. In the first half of the game, he played almost full while running non-stop on the court, always the most energetic person for the Lakers.

He made a steal on the defensive end, named the league's best player right now on the offensive end, and dumped Jokic with a single turn. He launched a counterattack to give TT an assist, and James' connection with TT made fans dream of returning to the Cavaliers, and James pulled his form back to 18 years on this night.

The 38-year-old James didn't lose to his opponent, he just lost to time

The 31 points were James' highest in the playoffs this year, and he used just half the ball. At the same time, 31 points in the half is also a new half-time scoring high in James' career, and at this point in time at the age of 38, James is still climbing to new heights in his career.

Of course, you and I know that James can't play the whole game like the G7 in the 18th East Final, and the Nuggets know it. It took the Nuggets 7 minutes and 21 seconds to overtake the score in the second half, and James' 15-point advantage in the first half was wiped out by the Nuggets in the first half.

The 38-year-old James didn't lose to his opponent, he just lost to time

At this point, Lakers fans are close to despair, the Nuggets are too strong a team, even compared with the original Cosmic Braves, one of the strongest opponents James has ever faced in his career. The Nuggets were able to respond to the points that the Lakers' defensive strategy gave the Nuggets, and Jokic stepped up his offense in the second half, with the Lakers losing by 20 points in the third quarter.

At the end of the third quarter, the Lakers could only rely on James and TT's blocking to score, James still did not rest in the third quarter, and in the absence of state today, the Lakers can only expect to continue to squeeze James' remaining energy.

In the fourth quarter, James was still on the court, still playing blocks with TT, and gave TT a dunk assist. When the Lakers signed TT, I thought he was just coming to the locker room, I really didn't expect him to play in the Western Conference finals and contribute so much energy in a game like this.

The 38-year-old James didn't lose to his opponent, he just lost to time

Of course, when James can't continue to hold the ball to the inside and can't continue to hit three-pointers, he chooses to carry Jokic on the defensive end, and you can even feel that Jokic's every impact on James is consuming James' few physical strength.

James' defense was effective, causing two offensive fouls on Jokic that nearly became a turning point for the Lakers, and he even chased Murray to cause a 24-second violation.

When the score was tied at 111, Jokic could top Davis from the three-point line all the way to the basket to score; James, on the other hand, could no longer make the inside and could only choose a difficult mid-range shot, and the ball hit the rebounding side.

The 38-year-old James didn't lose to his opponent, he just lost to time

With 4 seconds left and the Lakers trailed by two points, James received the ball to the basket, Gordon in front and Murray on the side. James, who had only 4.3 seconds to rest in the game, could not make a tie-up layup under such circumstances. Even when Murray was clutching the basketball, it was not easy for James to complete the shot.

The 38-year-old James didn't lose to his opponent, he just lost to time
The 38-year-old James didn't lose to his opponent, he just lost to time

It was the final moment of James' 20th season, and the game was over and James turned and walked towards the players' tunnel. He still holds his head high, like a defeated lion king, still maintaining pride.

At the age of 38 and 143 days, he played nearly the full game in the Western Conference final, with 40 points, 10 rebounds and 9 assists. This won't be the highest playoff game of James' career, and in his 20-year long career, James has had many nights that are even stronger than today.

But it's definitely the greatest playoff performance a player can deliver at this age. James burned out the final flame of his 20th season that night, but still didn't lead the Lakers to a win in the Western Conference finals.

The 38-year-old James didn't lose to his opponent, he just lost to time

Only on such a night can you realize that at this point in James' career, his opponent is no longer the Warriors or tonight's Nuggets, but the years that no one can beat.

You can feel James' tragedy as he tries his best to get out of the grip of Old Man Time. When the Lakers were 0-3, some fans asked me in the comments section if I could still trust James? After a night like this, I want to tell him that you can still do it

Believe James, even if he seems unable to do it most of the time, he can always burst out of superhuman energy in adversity, bringing you even a glimmer of hope.

Next season, please let the legend of immortality continue.

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