Two stars shot badly in Game 2, the Lakers still decided not to change against the Denver Nuggets

Missing all 6 3-pointers (including 0-3 3PT in the 4th round), LeBron James extended the bad long throw streak in the Playoffs, especially the 4th round to 0-19 3PT.

Anthony Davis is no better with 11 unsuccessful shots (only 4-15 FG), the stats of the two superstars of the Los Angeles Lakers are enough to prove why they lost to the Denver Nuggets at Game 2.

Although the scoreline was very close (103-108 in Game 2 and 132-126 in Game 1), this was the first time in two months that the Lakers lost two consecutive games.

Currently facing a 0-2 scoreline in the Western Finals, the duo Anthony Davis and LeBron James are still not too disappointed with what they and the whole team have shown.

“From Game 1 to Game 2 we improved. And if what worked well in Game 2 translates into Game 3, I think we'll be fine with the ability to win," LeBron James said after scoring 22 points with 10 assists, 9 rebounds and 4 steals.

After letting Denver score 132 points in Game 1, the Los Angeles Lakers held the opponent down to only 76 points through the first three innings of Game 2, leading by 11 points at home.

But the Nuggets' 22-5 run, largely due to Jamal Murray's three-point series, caused the Lakers to lose the game completely, 12 points behind (96-84).

LeBron James and his teammates did not give up. He and Austin Reaves took turns speaking to narrow the gap to 2 points. Unfortunately, that effort did not bring results with 2 unsuccessful shots of Anthony Davis and James.

“In terms of shots, I think we had enough space and those were the right shots. It's just that I don't have a good feeling myself," Davis said after scoring 18 points in Game 2, a much lower number than the 40 points obtained in Game 1.

“The feel of the throw doesn't change my mind about those throws. I will still finish and try to be more efficient. That's how I help this team win and I need to do better myself."

Game 3 will take place at Crypto.com Arena, the home ground and also a solid fulcrum for the Los Angeles Lakers in this entire Playoffs.

They've played a total of 7 games and haven't lost any, beating the Minnesota Timberwolves in the play-ins, the Memphis Grizzlies in the first round and then turning the Golden State Warriors into a former champion in the semi-finals.

The Denver Nuggets are a completely different team from the player who once owned two MVP titles - Nikola Jokic, along with the return of Jamal Murray.

However, the Lakers are not an easy team to bully when from the 7th seed to the Western finals, which has only happened twice in NBA history.

LeBron James and Anthony Davis may have just had a bad game, but it didn't diminish the trust their teammates put in the two brightest stars of the team.

“We have no problem at all. He can throw the shots he wants," Austin Reaves said after scoring a total of 45 points over two games against Denver.

"He's LeBron James, I don't think anyone can question or doubt the finishing decisions LeBron made during the game. We want him to comfortably take charge of the attack and make decisions.”

"We believe in that because it will help put the whole team in a position to win the game," Reaves added.

There is a statistic mentioned above that LeBron James has not thrown any 3-pointers in the 4th quarter in all 3 Playoffs series. Particularly in the two Western finals with Denver, James is having 0-10 3PT (including 4 innings).

Some say that LeBron is showing signs of fatigue when he has to exert himself in defense. Game 2 saw the "king" as one of Nikola Jokic's main defenders, relatively limiting the influence of the Denver star.

Sharing about this, LeBron James does not want to use physical strength as an excuse for the feeling of throwing: “Tired? Everyone is tired here. I certainly don't see that as a reason why I didn't finish well."

There is nothing strange about this reaction from James. He flipped his ankle twice in this match alone but did not come out for a second, nor did he see it as a reason for the defeat.

Being 2-0 down, in front of LeBron James and his teammates are two matches that must be won. Statistics are no longer on their side because of the 62 times where the team was 0-2 behind in the Playoffs, only 6 teams came upstream successfully, a rate of only 9%.

But of those six teams, two are led by LeBron James (Cleveland Cavaliers in 2007 and 2018). This will be an indicator that brings hope to Lakers fans in the two difficult matches ahead.

Game 3 and 4 will take place at the home ground of the Los Angeles Lakers, at 7:30 a.m. on Sunday (May 21) and Tuesday (May 23), respectively.