2021 NBA Playoffs: Short-handed Lakers search for answers ahead of elimination game

For the first time in his 18-year career, LeBron James lost back-to-back playoff games after a 115-85 defeat against the Suns in Game 5 on Tuesday. 

The Lakers, who are down 3-2 in the series, were without their other cornerstone Anthony Davis for the second consecutive game. Davis suffered a left groin strain in the second quarter of Game 4. 

The Lakers’ bad loss to the Suns without Anthony Davis showed they will have to take a different tack to avoid elimination in Game 6. 

The Lakers simply got their butts kicked, and the Suns got whatever they wanted, said James, who scored 24 points and shot 6-10 from three. They Lakers have to be better if they want to force a Game 7, he said. 

“It’s literally win or go home,” James said. “You shoot all the bullets you got and throw the gun too.” 

James, who is the NBA’s leading scorer in elimination games in the league history, said he is up for the challenge. 

The Lakers were 19-17 without Davis during the regular season. The team missed his defensive prowess and scoring in Games 4 and 5. Davis has averaged 21.8 points and two blocks in the series, scoring 34 points in each of the Lakers’ Games 2 and 3 victories over the Suns. 

But James said his mindset going into Game 6 is Davis won’t be ready to play and will prepare as if he’s not. 

The Lakers did not look like themselves without Davis. The top defensive team going into the playoffs gave up 115 points to the Suns – the highest point total in the series – and shot 35% from the field. 

The Lakers didn’t play well on either side of the ball, head coach Frank Vogel said. But they still have a chance to take care of home court and will remain confident in their depth, Vogel said. 

“We’ll find out what we’re made of and how bad we want this,” he said.