Has LeBron James ever been swept in the NBA Playoffs?

LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers are down 0-3 to the Denver Nuggets. No team (or player) has ever overcome that deficit. 

The Los Angeles Lakers and Denver Nuggets will wage battle in Game 4 of the Western Conference Finals on Monday night. The Nuggets are in the driver’s seat, holding a 3-0 series lead and making a statement on the national stage. Meanwhile, LeBron James finds himself in uncommon territory: facing a sweep.

James is widely considered one of, if not the best player in NBA history. He has appeared in 10 NBA Finals and won four rings (two with Miami, one with Cleveland, one with Los Angeles). He is the author of a significant portion of recent NBA history. When the lights are brightest, few players rise to the occasion like the King.

That being said, even the best players have blemishes on their résumé.

Has LeBron James ever been swept in the NBA Playoffs?

The answer is yes. LeBron James has been swept twice in the NBA playoffs.

The first time was in 2007, when LeBron’s Cavaliers faced Tim Duncan and the San Antonio Spurs in the Finals. It was James’ first trip to the Finals and his supporting cast paled in comparison to the Spurs’ well-rounded, star-studded roster. Duncan, Tony Parker, Manu Ginobili — few groups have ever been more prolific in the playoffs. For the then-23 year old James, the experience and talent disadvantage was simply too much to overcome.

James then got swept again in the NBA Finals in 2018, when his Cavaliers faced the Golden State Warriors. Complete with the most talented offensive roster in modern history, Golden State proved too talented for a Cleveland team that lacked star-level support for LeBron. Kyrie Irving was no longer with the team, leaving the Cavs with a starting backcourt of J.R. Smith and George Hill. James put together some monster individual performances, but he alone could not topple the Warriors’ dynasty.

When was the last time the Lakers were swept in the NBA Playoffs?

The Lakers have been swept many times across their storied history, but their most recent four-game exit from the playoffs came in 2013. Then the No. 7 seed, Los Angeles faced the vaunted Spurs in the first round and were swiftly discarded by Gregg Popovich’s team. Dwight Howard, Pau Gasol, and Steve Nash highlighted a depleted and deeply flawed Lakers rotation. That was a year the Lakers fandom has understandably tried to forget.