Shannon Sharpe goes after LeBron James and LA Lakers after yet another loss: “He’s playing the worse gm I’ve seen in play in 4ever”
LeBron James and the LA Lakers were just as bad without Russell Westbrook in the lineup. They are now winless in four games after losing 110-99 to the Denver Nuggets on the road on Wednesday night.
Early into the third quarter, when the Nuggets made a short run to put distance between the two teams, Shannon Sharpe tweeted:
“Lakers are just a bad basketball tm. With or w/o Russ. They’re TERRIBLE. Bron has 7 turnovers with 4-10 shooting. He’s playing the worse gm I’ve seen in [read: him] play in 4ever.”
Lakers are just a bad basketball tm. With or w/o Russ. They’re TERRIBLE. Bron has 7 turnovers with 4-10 shooting. He’s playing the worse gm I’ve seen in play in 4ever. 🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬
LeBron James was scoreless in the first quarter, but ended the first half with seven points, seven assists and four turnovers. During the Denver Nuggets’ big third quarter, James struggled badly and added just four points, one assist and three turnovers in the said period.
Overall, the four-time MVP had a forgettable outing, shooting just 8-21 from the field, including 2-8 from long range. He had 19 points, seven rebounds, nine assists and eight turnovers.
If the LA Lakers get more nights like this from the 18x All-Star, they simply won't go anywhere.
Many were expecting that without Russell Westbrook, the team would shoot and play better. In the three games with Russ, they averaged a league-worst 21.2% from 3-point distance. Against the Nuggets, they did improve, but marginally so, hitting just 26.7% of their long-range attempts.
If not for Matt Ryan, a seldom-used forward, the Lakers’ 3-point shooting would have been just as bad with Westbrook in the lineup.
Lakers fall to 0-4 tonight... without Russ. https://t.co/K6ULndydsE
Westbrook’s absence has proved that he’s not the only problem that’s hurting the LA Lakers. No one on the roster can practically shoot and when LeBron James has an off-night like he just did, the Lakers are toast.
With James struggling, Anthony Davis tried to keep himself going and led the Lakers with 16 first-half points to go with five rebounds and three assists. However, he scored just six points the rest of the way. Davis ended the night with 22 points, 15 rebounds, five assists, three steals and two blocks.
31 PTS (12/17 FGM)
Nikola Jokic did it ALL in the @nuggets win tonight!
🃏 31 PTS (12/17 FGM)
🃏 13 REB
🃏 9 AST
🃏 4 STL
#KiaTipOff22 https://t.co/cW3ZnzN2hN
AD couldn’t do much in stopping back-to-back reigning MVP Nikola Jokic on the defensive end. Jokic shredded Davis’ highly-touted defense with 31 points and nine assists on 12-17 shooting. The Lakers were outscored by 28 points in “The Joker’s” 35 minutes of game action.
LeBron James replaced Russell Westbrook in the LA Lakers’ lineup, per Skip Bayless
Russell Westbrook is known for stuffing the sheet with incredible numbers with little to no impact on winning. Most basketball fans have accused him of padding his stats on more than one occasion.
Against the Denver Nuggets on Wednesday, LeBron James’ numbers were somewhat similar to Westbrook’s. Skip Bayless had to point this out on Twitter:
“It's like LeBron (8 turnovers) has taken Westbrook's place.”
It's like LeBron (8 turnovers) has taken Westbrook's place.
LeBron James’ shooting percentage was within Westbrook's trademark inefficiency. He was tied for the most 3-point shots made with two but took a game-high eight attempts.
With inept shooting and erratic playmaking combined, Bayless had reason to think James had replaced Westbrook in the lineup.
There’s no respite for the Lakers as their next eight games will continue to be brutal. They better hope “King James” is back to his old self or they could find themselves in a deeper hole than they are in currently.