The Lakers went into their locker room trailing by 4 points at halftime. But the form of LeBron James looks ominous for the Suns.
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Phoenix desperately need a win today to realistically stay alive in the series. It seemed as if they’d be hard-pressed to do that at one point in the 2nd quarter. The Lakers went on a 12-2 run with LeBron in and AD on the bench to start the period off.
But from that point onwards, the Suns clawed back with some gritty play on both ends of the floor. Devin Booker continued to play aggressively by putting the ball on the floor and garnering defensive attention, opening up shots for his teammates.
Mark Jackson:
“Did you ever dunk in a game?Jeff Van Gundy:
“I remember when I first touched the net, I was so fired up. Unfortunately it was when I was a college junior.”— Steve Finamore (@CoachFinamore) May 30, 2021
Thus, what transpired was that the Phoenix Suns clawed back from a 36-25 deficit while LeBron rested. The Suns led 43-40 when LeBron came back into the game.
LeBron James makes the transition dunk, Jeff van Gundy jokes about himself in reaction
The Lakers forced a turnover and went off in transition late in the second quarter. Caruso led the break from the left side of their court as LeBron James trailed.
The Bald Mamba could’ve gone up and scored himself, given that he was ahead of everyone else. However, he saw the potential for a highlight reel play, and he duly tossed the ball onto the backboard.
An onrushing LeBron James gave us a glimpse of why he’s regarded as the ‘Chosen One’ by emphatically slamming the ball down. James had a vertical of 44 inches at his athletic peak. This dunk seems to have put him at least 36 inches up in the air as he collects the perfect oop from Caruso. Take a look for yourself.
CARUSO TO BRON OFF THE GLASS 😱 😱 😱 pic.twitter.com/BgiTg9Ug7V
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) May 30, 2021
Now, if I were Monty Williams, I wouldn’t make too much of the Suns’ 4-point halftime lead. James looks like he’s out for his pound of flesh today.
A big game is definitely on the cards if he keeps attacking the rim and breaking out in transition in this manner. It does seem like he never got injured at all!