LeBron James suffers first-round exit: How many times did it happen to Michael Jordan in the NBA playoffs?

On Wednesday night at Crypto.com Arena, the Minnesota Timberwolves pulled off the biggest upset of the playoffs so far by defeating the Los Angeles Lakers. LeBron James suffered another first-round elimination—an experience NBA legend Michael Jordan also endured.

With the Lakers, LeBron has now exited the playoffs early for the second consecutive year. The same thing happened last season, when they were defeated 4-1 by the Denver Nuggets. And they suffered the same fate in 2021, just a year after winning the championship, falling in six games to the Phoenix Suns.

That brings James’ total to three first-round playoff exits over the course of his career—all of them since joining Los Angeles. Coincidentally, that’s the same number of times it happened to Michael Jordan with the Chicago Bulls.

His Airness had a tough start in the NBA, joining a team that wasn’t ready to compete at the league’s highest level—a fact that became clear during the shooting guard’s first three seasons.

LeBron James #23 of the Los Angeles Lakers reacts during a game vs the Timberwolves

In 1985, MJ won Rookie of the Year, but the Bulls underperformed and lost 3-1 to the Milwaukee Bucks in the first round. In the following two seasons, despite Jordan’s impressive performances, Larry Bird’s Boston Celtics swept them both times.

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How many times did LeBron and Jordan miss the playoffs?

While a first-round playoff exit can be seen as a disappointment for players of LeBron James and Michael Jordan’s caliber, missing the playoffs entirely is even worse—and that’s something both stars experienced during their NBA careers.

James missed the postseason in his first two years with the Cleveland Cavaliers, in 2004 and 2005. It also happened twice in Los Angeles: during his debut season with the Lakers in 2018-19, and again in 2021-22.

Michael Jordan’s story was different. While he struggled to achieve team success in his early years with the Bulls, MJ never missed the playoffs in Chicago. However, that streak ended after his return to the NBA before his final retirement: Jordan failed to reach the playoffs with the Washington Wizards in 2002 and 2003.