In a surprising change of events, Skip Bayless cheered for the Los Angeles Lakers for the entirety of their Game 2 clash against the Denver Nuggets. Spamming on X (formerly “Twitter”), Bayless was also seen rooting for LeBron James. However, reacting to the game-winning shot of Jamal Murray, Skip couldn’t contain his excitement, lauding the Nuggets guard for “some of the clutchest closing” ever.
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JAMAL MURRAY GAME-WINNER.
Nugs complete 20-pt comeback pic.twitter.com/UnY7ezrTD8
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) April 23, 2024
Very unlike Skip Bayless, the FS1 analyst was extremely elated, hyping LeBron James throughout the course of the contest. Even after the King knocked down back-to-back three-pointers midway into the fourth quarter, Bayless was ecstatic, to say the least. The 72-year-old, who is infamous for unreasonably criticizing James, was revealed to be impressed by the latter.
GREAT HIGH-IQ PASS BY LEBRON … STILL THE BEST PASSER IN BASKETBALL.
— Skip Bayless (@RealSkipBayless) April 23, 2024
BOOM, BRON.
— Skip Bayless (@RealSkipBayless) April 23, 2024
THIS GAME BELONGS TO LEBRON JAMES.
— Skip Bayless (@RealSkipBayless) April 23, 2024
However, it didn’t take long before the UNDISPUTED host showed his other side. In the subsequent tweet, Bayless implied that LBJ missing a wide-open three-pointer resulted in the Purple & Gold’s loss.
PLEASE DON’T TELL ME LEBRON JAMES HAD A WIDE-OPEN UNGUARDED THREE TO WIN IT … AND MISSED IT … AND JAMAL MURRAY HAD A FALLAWAY CONTESTED BY ANTHONY DAVIS AT THE BUZZER … AND MADE IT!
— Skip Bayless (@RealSkipBayless) April 23, 2024
Jamal Murray’s game-winning buzzer-beater had Skip in disbelief at first.
THAT DID NOT JUST HAPPEN.
— Skip Bayless (@RealSkipBayless) April 23, 2024
Merely a few minutes later, the analyst went on to shower Murray with some lofty praise. After shedding light on Jamal’s subpar shooting display throughout the tie, the 6ft 4” guard was complimented with “clutchest closing” tag by the former sports journalist.
DON’T TELL ME JAMAL MURRAY WENT FROM AS COLD AS I’VE SEEN HIM TO … SLAMMING THE DOOR SHUT WITH SOME OF THE CLUTCHEST CLOSING YOU’LL EVER SEE.
— Skip Bayless (@RealSkipBayless) April 23, 2024
The Canadian did have an incredible showcase in the final period – recording 14 points on 75% FG.
Skip Bayless has been part of the sports media industry for almost 50 years. Considering the fact that Bayless has witnessed some of the most impressive sporting performances, and is still praising Murray for his “clutchest closing” says a lot about the Denver Nuggets sharpshooter’s outing in the final minutes.
The dynamic duo of Nikola Jokic (27 points, 20 rebounds, 10 assists) and Jamal Murray (20 points) lead the Colorado side to a 101-99 win (coming back from a 20-point deficit), going up 2-0 in the seven-game series. Having won all of the past 10 matchups against the LA side, Michael Malone’s boys will now be high on confidence as they fly back to California. Hoping to get extended rest before facing either the Anthony Edwards-led Wolves or Kevin Durant’s Suns in the next round, the defending champs will aim to wrap up the opening series soon.
