The Los Angeles Lakers were looking to take a commanding lead in their first-round matchup. Anthony Davis continued his domination practices on the Phoenix Suns putting all of his scoring options on display. The Lakers lost home-court advantage to Phoenix and the chance to close out the series in five games.
There’s this phrase LaVar Ball used to say in Los Angeles about speaking things into existence…
Thanks a lot, Stephen A. Smith…
At least fir right now, the @ Lakers are one lucky team! pic.twitter.com/bEFZpQcNcM
— Stephen A Smith (@stephenasmith) May 28, 2021
Are there any truths behind this statement? Maybe. But who cares?
- There weren’t many tears shed outside of Lakers Nation when Anthony Davis got injured on Valentine’s Day that kept him out for 30 games.
- Did those people care when Solomon Hill rolled up LeBron’s leg to cause a high ankle sprain to keep him out 26 games?
- Most of those people didn’t even care to watch these Lakers games when both were out of the lineup.
The Los Angeles Lakers arguably would be the second seed instead of the Phoenix Suns if these two stayed healthy. Part of the championship pedigree is staying healthy. Lake Show Life feels bad for Chris Paul, who is a first-ballot Hall of Famer, but injuries are a part of the game.
It definitely was in this game as Anthony Davis injured his groin in the first half and Chris Paul improved from his shoulder injury in a Lakers 100-92 loss to the Suns.
The series is now tied 2-2 with Game 5 in Phoenix.
The good from the Los Angeles Lakers’ loss:
LeBron James had a strong start!
LeBron understands the magnitude of closing out this series as quickly as possible and it was evident at times in the first half.
“Like a runaway train.” 🚂 🚂 pic.twitter.com/pIYFuqNBAk
— Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) May 30, 2021
In the second half, LeBron disappeared until Jae Crowder (Man, will this dude ever learn??!!) grabbed him around the shoulders for a foul. LeBron started giving him some of the old Game 3 treatment by taking him to the paint and giving him some work in the post.
He finished with 25 points, 12 rebounds and 6 assists.
The others knocked down 3 point shots…for a while!
In the beginning, the Lakers were looking good from behind the arc. After shooting only 7-28 from behind the arc, the Lake Show hit nine shots from distance in the first half alone!
Wesley Matthews and Ben McLemore both hit a couple of 3 pointers in the first half. Sadly, they shot only eight 3 pointers between them for the game. The rest of the team?…9-32. This sta would be worse if it wasn’t for Marc Gasol (More on him later!).
However, when AD did not return to the game, the Suns’ defense started locking up the airspace of the shooters and the well ran dry from the land of the extra point.
The bad from the Los Angeles Lakers’ loss:
Devin Booker woke up…
Monty Williams showed again why he will win NBA Coach of the Year this season. Whatever he said to Devin Booker after Game 3 worked. Booker came out in the first half playing a complete floor game for the first time since the opening game of the series scoring 17 points, 7 rebounds, 5 assists and a steal.
Booker deserves credit for this bounce-back performance. If Jae Crowder wasn’t humiliated so badly by LeBron James, Booker would be facing the same heat Anthony Davis got after Game 1, especially after his dirty play on Dennis Schroder. Yes, he was that bad!
Chris Paul’s shoulder…felt better!
The Suns’ chances of winning another game in this series depends on CP3’s right shoulder. ESPN’s Rachel Nichols reported that the shoulder was feeling much better coming into the game. Paul looked a lot more looser expanding his shooting range to the 3 point line. He scored 6 first-half points which matched his series average.
But what he brought to the Phoenix offense overall was the first half story. He had 5 assists that opened up opportunities for Booker to score and Crowder to get untracked.
Deandre Ayton.
The Lakers can’t stop this dude.
THE BIG FELLA HAMMERS IT HOME! 🔨 pic.twitter.com/SIZuAstnfz
— Phoenix Suns (@Suns) May 30, 2021
Ayton continued his David Robinson 2.0 series with 14 points (6-8 shooting!) and 17 rebounds.
The third quarter…
This tells the story. 15 points…3-16 shooting…six turnovers. Moving on.
Dennis Schroder…
Man those Dennis Schroder fans that decided to troll last game will be sitting this one out in the comment section. 8 points (3-13 shooting!), 4 rebounds and 3 assists.
The story from the Los Angeles Lakers’ loss:
Anthony Davis got hurt…again!
AD sprained his knee in Game 3 despite a monstrous game. The groin strain kept him out in the second half. He finished with 6 points (2-9 shooting!), 4 rebounds and 3 assists.
Bottom line, if Anthony Davis is struggling health-wise, the series will make another huge shift in the favor of Phoenix.
Chris Paul is starting to recover.
Before this game, CP3 could barely shoot the ball with his bad shoulder. Instead of holding his form on his shot, he was basically throwing it at the basket. His midrange returned and the Lakers suffered for it. Plus his teammates played with more poise with his presence. He finished with 18 points, 9 assists, 3 steals and 3 rebounds.
Marc Gasol played very well in this game!
It looks like the center controversy will be fired up in Lakers Nation for a couple of days. Andre Drummond rebounded well, but the Lakers did not make a run until Marc Gasol got back in the second half. Here’s the tale of the tape.
- Andre Drummond: 5 points (2-3 shooting!),10 rebounds.
- Marc Gasol: 12 points (4-6 shooting! 3-5 from behind the arc!), 8 rebounds, 3 assists and 3 blocks.
The fact is clear. Gasol can spread the floor in ways Drummond can’t.
Lake Show Life will monitor the injuries of Anthony Davis and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope for their availability for Game 5.