L.A. Mayor offers embarrassingly meager silver lining to Lakers season

There are plenty of reasons for fans of other teams to dislike the Los Angeles Lakers — biased media coverage, big-name stars, and tons of excuses when the season ends early/goes array.

Now, the mayor of Los Angeles appears to have taken it up a notch. Not as bad as the Cincinnati Mayor before the Bengals/Chiefs AFC Title Game, but still up there. Rachel Nichols found a since-deleted tweet from LA Mayor Karen Bass about the Lakers season.

At least you won the In-Season Tournament? Somewhere, the late Kobe Bryant is face-palming himself as are several other great Lakers. Talk about the lack of understanding the room and the lack of understanding that once again, distracting away from what the Nuggets just did to a team they have played with a personal vengeance against.

That right there is exactly why Denver Nuggets head coach Mike Malone is right to constantly attack the press for their coverage on the Lakers. It may come across as whiny to some, but news flash, he is absolutely right. The truth is harsh, and sometimes, it has to be said.

Need proof about what Mike Malone is saying? Check out last year's conference finals. Nuggets win Game 1, and what's the major topic on television? "The Lakers figured something out." Oh really? Nuggets sweep the series 4-0 but what's the topic? LeBron not retiring. Really?

Cut to the offseason and the Lakers come out talking after the Nuggets are enjoying their celebration following their first title in franchise history following their 4-1 series win over the Miami Heat. Insecure is the perfect word to describe how LeBron James felt when the Nuggets were celebrating. The same applies to Anthony Davis.

Need more proof? Bring on this postseason. Nuggets win three straight games and then right after Game 4 with the Lakers win, we see Keyshawn Johnson on Undisputed cheering over the fact that Nuggets star Jamal Murray might not play in Game 5. Cheering an injury? Cut to the end of the game, and who else but Murray to hit the game-winning shot and eliminate the Lakers?

Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass tweets just enough to give NBA fans more fuel to despise the Lakers

In Game 5, the Lakers were blessed with a 27-9 free throw advantage against the Nuggets and held the lead for a large portion of the game. Instead, it came down to one final shot by Jamal Murray to close out the season. It was also vindication for the Nuggets who unfortunately will have to hear all the excuses that will be provided for the Lakers.

As for the Mayor, it was a tongue-in-cheek tweet, and given that it was deleted tells you all you need to know. Whatever it takes to steer all the negativity away and recoup the victim mentality. Yes, the Lakers were the lower seed, but the way they were talked about, you would think that the Lakers were 82-0 and unbeaten and just glitzy and so on and so forth.

There you have it. Denver is up against Minnesota, and the battle between Anthony Edwards and Nikola Jokic will be truly great television. Two stars that largely are underappreciated will go head to head for the right to play in the Western Conference Finals is a true good story. As for the Lakers, expect the networks to be heavily invested in them despite the fact that their season is OVER.