A club headed by LeBron James had never lost 2-0 in the opening round of the NBA playoffs before to Monday.
However, James was left in that situation following his Lakers' defeat by the Nuggets.
James has a good reason for being in this situation right now.
With the exception of his last three appearances, "The King"'s teams have always had the better seed in the opening round of the playoffs since he made his debut in 2005–06.
James' teams have been struggling to finish in the bottom half of the standings as Father Time has caught up with him, which has forced him to play harder opponents early in the playoffs.
For instance, his seventh-seeded Lakers faced the Suns, who were ranked second, in 2021. But they managed to win the series in six games instead of falling behind 2-0. Then,
in the opening round of 2023, the seventh-seeded Lakers stunned the Grizzlies, a young team, by pulling off "the upset."
But James has to contend with the 57-win, reigning champion Nuggets in 2024.
Few people would have predicted that James' first-round streak would end despite his team blowing a 20-point lead.
James' teams have lost 2-0 in the playoffs nine times overall, with a 3-5 record in the prior eight games.
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