If you lose G5, you will be out of class, and the Lakers really want to take Ham? Budenholzer is expected to coach Zhan Mei to win the championship
At the home of G4, the Lakers won the defending champion Nuggets in one go, thus successfully avoiding being swept out by a big score of 4-0! While rewriting the big score to 1-3, this also allowed the Lakers to continue their playoff journey. Although they are unlikely to advance, the Lakers still have a chance to turn things around before the series is closed! Although miracles are rare, the NBA has never lacked miracles.
From the G4 game, we can see that the Lakers have successfully gotten rid of the "Lake Three Collapses"! The most obvious change on the court is that they did not suddenly "completely lose power" in the third quarter as before, so they were beaten by the Nuggets and could not find the north. While always maintaining the score lead in the first half, withstanding the pressure of a possible collapse in the third quarter laid the foundation for the Lakers to close the game in the fourth quarter. The Nuggets are certainly strong, but as long as the Lakers ensure that there is no sudden "power outage" in the third quarter, then they still have a chance to make some moves in the series, G4 is the best example!
Of course, even if they have won the G4 so far, every next game is actually walking on thin ice for the Lakers who are 1-3 behind! They can't make any mistakes, and once they make a mistake, they will be doomed and say goodbye to this season! In this way, the G5 battle between the two teams has become a lot of attention. Losing means that the Lakers will say goodbye to this season, and if they win, they can bring the suspense back to Los Angeles, thus laying the groundwork for the tiebreaker! Of course, the superior Nuggets will definitely not let the Lakers leave with a smile easily!
Before the game, the American media ESPN predicted the Lakers VS Nuggets G5 win rate, of which the Lakers win rate was only 33%, and the Nuggets win rate was as high as 67%. It can be seen that the Nuggets are indeed the team that is particularly favored to win. Perhaps, it doesn't matter to them to lose G4, they have the confidence and capital to send the Lakers a favor. Then, G5 returned to their home court to end the suspense of this round of the series!
As everyone knows, once they lose G5, the Lakers are very likely to usher in a big shock. Among them, Lakers coach Darvin Ham may be the first person to be held accountable for sacking. Because he really doesn't have the ability to lead Zhan Mei further, last year's Western Finals should be his limit. Therefore, if the Lakers still want to make a breakthrough, then a change of coach is imminent.
Recently, ESPN Register talked about Lakers coach Darvin Ham on the show. "If you're a Lakers head coach and you're swept in the first round or you've only won five games, you're probably out of business," he said. Hamm may face such a problem. If the Lakers lose G5, that's part of the conversation the Lakers will have. The Lakers will look at who the unemployed coaches are on the market, and I think the most accomplished coach they can find at the moment is Budenholzer. ”
Therefore, the first-round G5 battle with the Nuggets is a life-and-death battle for the Lakers, and it is also a battle for Ham to defend his position. Once the Lakers lose G5 and are eliminated, then his Lakers coaching career may be over. At that time, Budenholzer, the champion coach who is idle at home, is waiting for the opportunity to coach James and join forces to win the championship! Perhaps, such a partnership can make the Lakers climb the O'Brien Cup podium again. What do you think about this?