In another game that came down to the final possession on Denver's home court, it was again a Jamal Murray jumper that sealed the Lakers fate, this time over the outstretched arm of Austin Reaves, in a 108-106 game that will leave the Lakers searching for answers and an entire offseason to reflect on where they could have been better and how to try to reach their goals next season.
The Lakers will kick themselves over the plays they did not make, whether it was their nine missed free throws, the open jumpers that did not fall (10-35 from behind the arc), or the rebounds they did not grab (nine Nuggets offensive rebounds for 15 points).
Just as they will lament the stinger that Anthony Davis suffered that cost him several minutes at the end of the 3rd quarter and limited his movement and effectiveness the rest of the game, their final timeout being lost when the team used, and won, their 2nd challenge of the game late in the 4th quarter to overturn a foul called on AD, and then not being able to advance the ball with three seconds left after Murray's fateful jumper and not being able to get up a shot that could have tied or won the game.
These are the sorts of moments that live in the mind long after the result of the game has settled in, magnified by the stakes of a playoff series on the line, coupled with all the contemplating and second guessing that if just one or two of those things go differently, maybe the entire outcome is shifted.
And while those are the memories that will certainly persist, all that went into this game being as close and as spirited a contest as it was should not be forgotten either. Many players on both sides laid it all on the line, and even though it was Denver who came out on top, the Lakers should be proud of how they played.
LeBron James was brilliant in defeat, nearly tallying a triple-double with 30 points, nine rebounds, and 11 assists. Making 11 of his 21 shots, including three of his seven attempts from deep, LeBron continued to defy what should be possible for a player in his 21st season by taking the reins of his Lakers team on offense and dictating the flow of possession after possession to get good shots for either himself or a teammate for nearly the entirety of his 40 minutes played.
Denver never really found a solution for James' ability to orchestrate good offense as he beat their traditional matchups and coverages with pick-and-rolls between himself and AD or between himself and one of the guards for him to either get downhill for a drive, create a good look for his roll-man, or to spray the ball out to an open shooter.
And then when the Nuggets changed their coverages by either switching those screens or putting a smaller defender on him, LeBron bullied his way into the paint on drives or post ups, getting shots in the restricted area or kicking the ball out to teammates for open jumpers.
Anthony Davis was also great in this game, particularly though the 1st half and into the early part of the third quarter before his shoulder issue. AD was again able to find the creases of Denver's defense, slicing his way to the paint where he was able to finish at the rim with relative ease whether diving after setting screens, cutting to the ball, or running hard in transition to get buckets.
As it was all series, the Nuggets had few (if any) answers for Davis' combination of quickness, power, touch, and general ability to finish on the move, all of which allowed him to hit eight of his 11 shots from the field to score 17 points -- with 16 of those coming before he was hurt.
Davis also grabbed a team-high 15 rebounds, dished out four assists and blocked two shots in another game where he was great on the backboards and had a huge defensive ask to both defend Jokic one-on-one while also helping to protect the paint and help his perimeter players vs. Denver's movement and screen-heavy attack.
The Lakers also got double-digit scoring nights from the rest of their starting lineup as Austin Reaves (19 points, four assists), Rui Hachimura (15 points, five rebounds), and D'Angelo Russell (14 points, six assists), all had their moments where they were positive influences within the game and allowed the Lakers to either take the lead or battle back to keep the game close after the Nuggets had come back.
Despite these contributions, however, all three would likely point to the plays they could have made or the foul shots they missed or the shots they took that did not fall. Whether it was Reaves missing two of his three freebies after drawing a foul on a three-pointer, Rui not getting a few inside shots to fall on a layup and then a couple of put-backs, or Russell connecting on just two of his 10 attempts from behind the arc. Just as I'm sure LeBron and AD would do similar for some of the plays they would love to have back -- especially in a game where the final margin was this slim.
This is the nature of close games, though.
And in the end, Denver proved a worthy opponent and got the performances that speak to their championship pedigree and mettle. From Nikola Jokic scoring 25 points and grabbing 20 rebounds on a night he was not his best taking care of the ball (seven turnovers) to Jamal Murray playing through his calf strain to score 32 points and dish seven assists, the Nuggets earned their victory in a hard-fought game.
It's a shame someone had to lose a contest in which both teams battled the way they did, but unfortunately it was the Lakers who came out on the wrong side of things. And with that loss, their season is over, and for the second straight year at the hands of the Denver Nuggets. But that end does not come without a tremendous effort, both in the series overall and this Game 5 in which the team battled hard and can walk away with their heads held high even in the face of defeat.