There were plenty of people celebrating the untimely and unexpected early exit for the Los Angeles Clippers at the hands of the Denver Nuggets in Tuesday night’s Game 7. After the Clippers blew a 3-1 lead and failed to hold up their end of the bargain in setting up an All-L.A. Western Conference Finals, Lakers fans, as well as the fans of basically every other NBA team, rejoiced on social media. But the Lakers themselves insist they didn’t care all that much about what the Clippers were doing, because they never have been.
During Wednesday’s session with the media, Lakers forward Kyle Kuzma said the Lakers were focused on what’s in front of them, because things like an upset can happen.
Kyle Kuzma on the Clippers losing in Game 7: "We're not focusing on the Clippers. We never really were. It's all about what's in front of you."
— Mark Medina (@MarkG_Medina) September 16, 2020
Kyle Kuzma was asked if the Lakers had any Clippers schadenfreude.
"No, not really, because we're not focused on the Clippers and we never really were. It's all about who's in front of you. If you focus on other teams instead of taking care of your food, shit happens like that."
— James Herbert (@outsidethenba) September 16, 2020
The Lakers suffered Game 1 losses in each of the last two series, but promptly handled their business after that. Also, Game 1 losses and a immediate response are a hallmark of LeBron’s playoff career. LeBron has won Game 2s 12 times in his playoff career after dropping Game 1, which is typically a “feel-out” game for him.
