LeBron James isn’t off to the start he probably hoped for as Los Angeles Laker. After falling 0-2 on the season, the Lakers hosted the San Antonio Spurs Monday night at the Staples Center, where they pushed the game to overtime but fell up just a tad short, losing 143-142.
During regulation, LeBron capped off an 8-0 run in the last minute of the game by nailing a deep 3-pointer with 2 seconds left. Spurs had a chance to win the game, but Demar Derozan missed a tough fade away shot.
Lakers then carried their momentum from regulation into overtime and eventually went up 142-136. After a layup from Spurs and then a HUGE 3-pointer by Rudy Gay, the Spurs cut the score to 142-141 with 15 seconds left. Lakers inbounded the ball to LeBron who instantly got fouled and was heading to the line with 12.8 seconds left. Up by one, LeBron missed not the first, but BOTH free throws, giving Spurs a chance to rebound the ball and take the lead with 11 seconds left. And that’s exactly what they did, with Patty Mills hitting a 22-foot jumper thanks to some lazy defense by Lonzo Ball, giving the Spurs a 143-142 lead immediately following James’ 2 missed FT’s.
Lakers did have a chance to win it however with LeBron having the ball with 6.8 seconds left, but rather than driving James settled for a tough fall away jumper, which he ended up missing as the buzzer sounded.
Spurs escaped with a 143-142 win and ended the game on a 11-4 run, with LeBron missing 2 crucial free throws with under 15 seconds left.
Check out some of the reactions from people on Twitter (below).
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