- Nuggets eliminate Lakers from postseason once again
- James will discuss future with friends and family
- Oklahoma City sweep New Orleans to advance
The futures of LeBron James and Darvin Ham with the Los Angeles Lakers are murky after their first-round playoff exit to the Denver Nuggets was confirmed on Monday night.
For James, the decision on whether he wants to wear purple and gold again in his 22nd NBA season is up to him. For Ham, it’s about whether the team brings him back for a third season as coach after back-to-back series losses to Denver.
The defending champion Nuggets eliminated Los Angeles from the playoffs with a 108-106 win in Game 5 of their series on Monday. After the game, James was asked if he had given any thought that this could be his last time pulling on his No 23 Lakers jersey.
“I’m not going to answer that,” said James, who had 30 points and 11 assists.
All of it was difficult for James to process so soon after Jamal Murray drained the winning floater in the closing seconds. It was the second game in the series that Murray hit the game-winning shot. It was another game in which the Lakers blew a decent lead, and the series was closer than the 4-1 result suggests.