"Lakers have to be encouraged" - Shannon Sharpe believes LeBron James and co. should maintain positive outlook

LeBron James and the LA Lakers were so close in pulling off an upset win in Game 1 of the Western Conference finals. Although they climbed back from a 21-point deficit in the third quarter, the Nuggets prevailed 132-126 on Tuesday.

At the 10:10 mark in the fourth quarter, Lakers' Austin Reaves made a timely 3-pointer to bring the deficit to just eight points. From them on, it was a completely different ball game.

The Lakers were able to limit Jokic's effectiveness on offense with two moves. They placed Rui Hachimura on him and shifted Anthony Davis a help defender who can roam and provide support whenever Jokic would take the ball down low.

On "Skip and Shannon: Undisputed," Shannon Sharpe, a Lakers fan, said:

"I think the Lakers should be encouraged, knowing that the Nuggets played as well as they could possibly play for three quarters and late in that ball game they still found a way to be in this ball game. So, if I'm (Lakers coach) Darvin Ham, I'm not going back to that smallish lineup. I probably start Rui. He's a big body, he can make shots, he can rebound."

Nikola Jokic had 34 points on 12-for-17 shooting (3-for-3 from 3-point range) with 21 rebounds and 14 assists as he looked dominant as ever. However, the Lakers limited him to just three points on 0-for-2 shooting in the fourth quarter. That allowed the visiting team to alter the Nuggets' nerves a bit with the possibility of stealing a road win.

LeBron James on Game 1 against the Nuggets

Following the Game 1 loss, LeBron James talked about the Lakers coming up short of completing the fourth quarter comeback.

"It took us a half to get into the game, and that was pretty much the ball game right there,” James said. “We have to understand that we have to start from the tipoff, and they punched us in the mouth to start. In the postseason, it doesn’t matter if you cut it to one or you’re down 20. If you lose, you lose. We have to play better. We have to rebound better."

LeBron James finished with an impressive statline of 26 points on 9-for-16 shooting with 12 rebounds and nine assists. His outing was coupled with Anthony Davis' monster outing: 40 points (14-for-23 shooting), 10 rebounds, three assists, three steals and two blocks.