The Los Angeles Lakers and their fans have received a harsh reality check in the Western Conference Finals against the Denver Nuggets.
They've been a good "redemption" tale after overcoming a disastrous start to the season, but it's all gone now. On Saturday night,
The Lakers fell into a 3-0 hole that not even LeBron James could pull them out of. The supporters had regained their faith, and most expected them to win this series against Denver.
The New York Knicks were down 3-0 before falling to the Rochester Royals in seven games in the 1951 Finals.
The Denver Nuggets nearly accomplished the unthinkable a second time in 1994, but were defeated in seven games by the Utah Jazz in the Western Conference Semifinals.
They'd already created history in the first round, upsetting the Seattle Supersonics in five games as the No. 8 seed.
Finally, in 2003, the Portland Trailblazers were defeated in seven games by the Dallas Mavericks in the first round.
But it's been 20 years since the Blazers fought back against the Mavericks, and this is LeBron's 20th season in the league, so maybe that's the silver lining.