The End of An Era
Congratulations to the Brooklyn Nets for winning the 2021 NBA Championship. This Lakers loss in Game 6 at home brings up a slew of questions. With the most important being...has Father Time won?
Vegas is having a field day. They took me to the back of the shed and gave me a proper ass whooping for my naivete. Which reminds me, I should kiss goodbye to my ‘Possible Finals Matchup: Lakers v Nets’ Future Bet. Everything is not what it seems. My fake bookie is sitting back smiling, knowing dinner is on me for the next month with all the fake money that I have lost.
But it’s time.
Let’s break down how the Lakers imploded, what the future holds, and how far the Suns can possibly go.
Photo From: Valley Of The Suns
Lackluster Lakers
The game is not over, yet my television has been off for what seems like a century. LeBron’s 1st Round record is now 14-1.
The Lakers played with their food.
The Lakers lost this series in Game 1. Yes, they were up 2-1...but the Suns never went into panic-mode. LA allowed Booker and Ayton (the two most influential young players on the Suns roster) to gain confidence in Game 1.
Ayton single handedly ate both Anthony Davis and Andre Drummond alive. A 22 year old center went head-to-head with arguably a Top 5 PF of All-Time, and took him to Benihana’s. Although Anthony Davis came back from injury, you have to enter the series trying to show Ayton there’s levels to this.
Show him that he is not ready for the physicality and aggression that comes with the playoffs, but no. Anthony Davis settled for a step-back fadeaway and finesse moves, rather than putting a body into Ayton. DeAndre is their only true big man (not counting Frank Kaminsky) who gets minutes. Wear him out, target him play in and play out.
But AD is just the tip of the iceberg.
Dennis Schroeder...the man who turned down an $84 million contract extension from the Lakers earlier this season. That’s tuff.
That offer is formally off the table.
Andre Drummond, the man who is the poster boy for losing in the 1st round. Drummond plays with a clumsiness that rivals Forrest Gump. With that being said, I’m taking Gump every day of the week and twice on Sundays if the other option is Drummond. Seriously, watch him. Time in and time out, he gets absolutely destroyed on screen and rolls. Drummond seems like a nice guy and his family is from Jamaica so it’s hard to knock on him. At times, it looks like he’s more disappointed in himself for his poor play than the viewers at home. He has good intentions, but as Kobe said…”Not everybody is cut out to be a Laker”.
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope. My slander for KCP is rooted all the way back to the early regular season when I died on his o1.5 3PT hill 5 times in a row. He shot absolutely lights out last season in the playoffs...where did that guy go?
Did the Bubble really have that much of an impact on his performance?
This Lakers loss is just a Cluster f--k of “what is going on’s”.
Photo From: CBS Sports
This is LeBron’s first series loss in the 1st Round
Making his All-Time 1st Round record 14-1
Before we get to LeBron, these analytics should tell you everything you need to know.
*Prior to Game 6*
Dennis Schroeder Season 3PT%: 35%
Dennis Schroder Playoffs 3PT%: 30%
KCP Season 3PT%: 41%
KCP Playoffs 3PT%: 8%
Alex Caruso Season 3PT%: 40%
Alex Caruso Playoffs 3PT%: 29%
Wesley Matthews Season 3PT%: 34%
Wesley Matthews Playoffs 3PT%: 26
LeBron James Season 3PT%: 37%
LeBron James Playoffs 3PT%: 40%
Moral of the story, the Lakers’ wing shooters could not buy a bucket. LeBron cannot do everything by himself.
Ah, you think I’m letting him off the hook...I’m not.
Let’s get to the good stuff.
Death, Taxes…LeBron?
There are three things in life that are, or should I say were, inevitable. Death, taxes, and a healthy LeBron James carrying his team to an NBA Finals appearance.
That is not the case anymore. From 2011-2020 (excluding 2019 injury season), every team knew in order to win an NBA Championship...you have to go through Bron.
There are two sides to this story, each holding their own legitimacy. Let’s break them down.
#1: LeBron James had no help
Refer to the numbers above to see how every single one of his floor spacers shot worse in the playoffs than in the regular season. LeBron James led teams are known to thrive on floor spacing, with players who can knock down open three pointers once the double/triple comes to LeBron.
The Phoenix Suns have the utmost respect for LeBron and AD, but feel as if they are a better team 3-12.
The Suns began to shrink the floor, allowing them to crowd the paint when LeBron attempted to drive. With three point shooters not able to cash from deep, the pick and roll, alley-oop game for Drummond was not able to become an effective tool.
And then there’s Anthony Davis. Coming back and playing into shape in a playoff series is not an easy task. With that being said, AD seems to be made of glass. The best ability is availability.
LeBron was facing a deep, young and hungry No. 2 seed in the Phoenix Suns. While also being without his running mate (Anthony Davis), zero floor spacers, and Andre Drummond.
#2: LeBron has lost a step
Did he have to overcome huge obstacles in order to beat the Phoenix Suns? Sure, but that’s why he is the best.
We have seen LeBron countless times face teams with better rosters than his.
Only this time, he lost.
Must we forget when in 2018... LeBron took Jordan Clarkson (pre Sixth Man Award), Cedi Osman, George Hill and JR Smith to the NBA Finals?
Watching this series showed how LeBron was either not healthy enough, or too fatigued to drive to the paint aggressively for 48 minutes. This player should not be held to the standard of other players. In Games 5 and 6, LeBron had the opportunity to take over the game...but played passive.
So which side would you be on, 1 or 2?
Let us know in the contact tab under MORE!
Where do the Lakers go from here?
The Los Angeles Lakers have a lot of soul searching to do. The Brooklyn Nets will certainly win the 2021 NBA Championship barring any catastrophic injuries. The Lakers as currently constructed will have a hard time getting to the NBA Finals next year, let alone facing a Brooklyn juggernaut.
What moves should they make?
For starters, Andre Drummond should not be wearing a Lakers jersey next year. He clogs the paint too much for a team with two star players who live inside. Drummond does not provide versatility if switched onto the perimeter, and is a liability when it comes to late game decision-making and free throw shooting.
Next up is Dennis Schroeder. Him turning down the $84 million contract extension was a blessing in disguise. After deleting “Los Angeles PG” from his IG bio prior to Game 6, it seems as if Dennis can also see the writing on the wall.
Make a Trade! The Lakers need to go all in on these last 2 years of LeBron James. Make a trade, if it takes giving up Talen Horton Tucker for a veteran/floor general, so be it. THT is not a difference maker when you’re trying to beat the Brooklyn Nets in a seven game series. I have seen Rob Pelinka make the necessary adjustments and roster moves before. Let's see how the Lakers front office does in Phase 2 of this Championship race.
The Suns of Anarchy
The Bright Future Suns are a thing of the past, that future is now. After beating the Lakers in 6 games, the Suns have shown the league that this was not a feel out year. They are going for it now. Devin Booker has recounted many times how his game was styled for the playoffs, he showed up and proved it. DeAndre Ayton, a young center in the NBA, the former No.1 pick in the NBA Draft, showed that he belonged on the same court as Anthony Davis.
Floor spacers and 3&D players such as Cam Johnson and Mikal Bridges showed that they are ready for the bright lights, albeit their debut playoff appearances. Dating back to the end of the bubble, the Phoenix Suns bought into Monty Williams style of basketball and work ethic. It paid off. They are advancing to the 2nd round of the NBA Playoffs.
Photo From: ProBasketballTalk | NBC Sports
It all started in the Bubble
After these few hours of celebrating, the Phoenix Suns will begin game planning for their next matchup. The Denver Nuggets.
To place a prediction right now is way too premature. We’ll have to see how CP3 can recover in these 3 days before Game 1.
Photo From: SLC Dunk
The Wild Wild West
The Western Conference has talent everywhere. The Utah Jazz, Dallas Mavericks, Denver Nuggets, and Phoenix Suns are all led by relatively young stars in the game. We are watching history, the torch is being passed. They do not give a rat’s ass about the veteran stars in the league.
Soon to be NBA Regular Season MVP Nikola Jokic just eliminated Dame in Portland in 6 games
Luka is averaging 35 - 9 - 8 against arguably the best two way wing defenders in the league
Devin Booker exploded for 22 in the 1st quarter…finishing with 46 points in Game 6, knocking out the Lakers
The future is now. The Lakers heading into next season can’t have their eyes focused on Brooklyn. The first task at hand will be figuring out how to get to the Finals, in an ever increasingly tough Western Conference.