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Longtime TV personality Skip Bayless has long been an outspoken critic of LeBron James. Over the years, Bayless has made claims like LeBron's 2020 championship hurting his legacy, with many members of the NBA community laughing off his takes. Following the Denver Nuggets recent late-game comeback to the Lakers, Bayless dropped some scathing hot takes.
Despite the fact that LeBron James led the Lakers in scoring in the fourth quarter, Bayless wasn't ready to let the future Hall of Famer off the hook easily. After watching LA blow a massive lead they had built up over the first three quarters, Bayless took aim at James.
As he indicated on Fox Sports 1's Undisputed, he doesn't believe that James has the quote unquote clutch gene that other superstars do. Following the team blowing a 10-point fourth-quarter lead, Bayless explained his stance on Tuesday morning's installment of Undisputed:
"Everybody says, you bang on LeBron too much, and I'm going to bang on him again because he deserves it this time. He did some all time great things in this fourth quarter. ... The bigger picture is they were up 20 with, what was it, ten minutes to go in the third quarter.
"They were up ten going to the fourth quarter. ... And that's when LeBron had to hit the back to back threes. ... I've said from the start, he just doesn't have the clutch gene. He doesn't have the closer gene. This is a closers game."
Looking at LeBron James' Game 2 performance following Skip Bayless' comments
While LeBron James' missed 3-pointer drew quite a bit of attention from fans, his performance throughout the game tells a different story. As previously mentioned, the Lakers outscored the Nuggets throughout the first three quarters of the game.
During that time, LeBron James' play remained consistent, with the four-time champ scoring five points in each of the first two quarters. Moreover, throughout the first half, he shot 50%, including a 3-pointer.
In the third quarter James struggled, going just 1-4 from the floor, scoring just four points, but he made up for it with five assists in the third quarter. In the fourth quarter, with the Denver Nuggets seeking a comeback, James came alive, going 5-9 from the floor while knocking down two 3s.
Although his playmaking suffered as a result of his shot-hunting, James led the way for the Lakers with 12 points in the fourth. For comparison, Taurean Prince was the team's second-leading scorer in the fourth quarter with just three points.
Moreover, when looking at the fourth-quarter stats of both teams, the only player to outscore LeBron James was Jamal Murray, who dropped 14.
Nevertheless, the clutch missed three by LeBron James is sure to be a major talking point throughout the rest of the series as James and the Lakers look to bounce back.
Guess the Bulls players in this quiz and it's not going to be easy!
