Lakers drop Game 3; now face elimination

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The Lakers lost Game 3 at home against the Denver Nuggets, making it a 3-0 deficit for LA. 

The Purple and Gold again led in the first half, but the Nuggets took over in the second half. Darvin Ham and the coaching staff haven’t had an answer for Denver’s halftime adjustments.

The Lakers led for the entire first half.

The Nuggets took the lead with 10:07 to go in the 3rd Q. LAL briefly went back ahead with 8:40 to go in the 3rd.

DEN led the rest of the way, winning 112-105.

The defending champs are up 3-0, and have won 11 straight overall vs. LAL.

— Dave McMenamin (@mcten) April 26, 2024

Anthony Davis once again showcased his brilliance, finishing with an impressive 33/15/3 while shooting 14-23. LeBron James also delivered a stellar performance with 26/6/9 on 12-20.

Austin Reaves stepped up with 22/5/3 with four steals, shooting 8-17. Their other two starters, D’Angelo Russell and Rui Hachimura, struggled mightily. 

Russell played 24 minutes and had zero points on 0-7 shooting and 0-6 from three. Hachimura wasn’t much better, with five points in 28 minutes.

D’Lo refusing to take part in the huddle now. https://t.co/GjGz17ZNp0 pic.twitter.com/rRL39WSK5z

— Lakers All Day Everyday (@LADEig) April 26, 2024

Poor performances from two key role players in a must-win game make it tough when you have a small margin of error.

As always, the Nuggets' offense was in a groove in the second half. Four of their starters (Jokic, Murray, Porter Jr., Gordon) finished with 20 or more points. Denver's balanced attack was too much for the LakeShow to handle, especially with dry spells in their own offense.

The Lakers take on the Nuggets for Game 4 on Saturday and will face elimination.