Game 3 of the Suns-Lakers series saw the series go to L.A. for the first time and the first half featured the intensity of the first two games but not the shot-making we’d come to enjoy from the first two games. Neither team could crack 45 in the first half, as L.A. took a 43-40 lead. The only two players that seemed engaged and at their best were Anthony Davis, who had 12 points, and Deandre Ayton, who had 10. The big man battle was intriguing, but neither got the backcourt support they are accustomed to or hope for.
Kuz with the lob, AD with the jam
pic.twitter.com/q9kHiWT6u0
— Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) May 28, 2021
We refer to this as
"DOMINAYTON" pic.twitter.com/Y8SHzk6BVB
— Phoenix Suns (@Suns) May 28, 2021
LeBron James was quiet in the first half with five points, seemingly trying to just get everyone else involved and in a rhythm, which didn’t work as well as he had probably hoped in what was a rock fight of a first half. In the second half, there was no question where LeBron’s head was at, as he recognized it was time to put the Suns away before they could figure out their own offensive woes, scoring 10 points in the first seven minutes of the half, to go along with three assists, as L.A. began to pull away with an extended 21-9 run to open the second half.
First play of the second half. Bron’s got it. pic.twitter.com/SejqIJAxh7
— Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) May 28, 2021
Bron playing bully-ball
pic.twitter.com/Ofl8cu4vCq
— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) May 28, 2021
It's too easy for LeBron
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— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) May 28, 2021
Anthony Davis took over from there, as he had 18 of his game-high 34 points in the third quarter to help the Lakers separate to a 76-63 lead going into the fourth quarter.
He drops 18 of his 30 in the 3Q.. @Lakers up 8 early in the 4Q on TNT. #NBAPlayoffs pic.twitter.com/KYtu7xuWUa
— NBA (@NBA) May 28, 2021
After a Suns run brought them back within single digits, the Lakers once again asserted themselves to take a 21-point lead early in the fourth as the Suns simply had no answers for the Laker defense. Aside from Ayton’s 22-point, 11-rebound effort, the Suns just didn’t have anyone who could consistently put the ball in the bucket. Devin Booker, after a tremendous first two games in the series, had 17 points on 6-of-19 shooting as he went cold in L.A., and Chris Paul’s continued shoulder issues limited him to a 3-of-8 shooting night as he still just does not have the shooting range. With Booker having an off night and Paul unable to be his normal self, the Lakers defense became suffocating, demanding that anyone else beat them and few of the Suns could answer the call.
Chief among the Suns’ role players struggling is Jae Crowder, who is now 1-for-20 in the series from three-point range after an 0-for-6 night. On top of shooting woes, Crowder continues to have to deal with his personal playoff boogeyman, LeBron James, who seemingly lives to feast on him after their many battles over the years.
THE LBJ REVERSE.. OR THE BENCH REAX??#NBAPlayoffs on TNT pic.twitter.com/i8b9tpLNTu
— NBA (@NBA) May 28, 2021
In the end, the Lakers rolled to a 109-95 win despite the best efforts of a late Suns spurt, led by a trio of Cam Payne three-pointers in the fourth quarter to make things briefly intriguing. The frustrations of the game came to a boiling point for Booker and Crowder, who got tossed in the final minute after Booker shoved Dennis Schröder to the ground, earning a Flagrant 2, and Crowder was tossed for jawing with the Lakers’ point guard.
L.A. now holds a 2-1 series lead and Game 4 will be very important for Phoenix, as they will need a win to avoid going back home staring elimination in the face. To bounce back, they’ll need to regroup mentally and physically before Sunday’s Game 4, because they looked rattled and frustrated for much of Thursday night.
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