Devin Booker Drops 30, Suns Rout LeBron James, Lakers in Game 5
The Phoenix Suns are one win away from their first playoff series victory since the 2009-10 season.
Phoenix pushed its lead over the Los Angeles Lakers in their first-round matchup to 3-2 with a commanding 115-85 victory in Tuesday's Game 5 at Phoenix Suns Arena. Devin Booker led the way for a Suns squad that now has two opportunities to close out the defending champions.
A solid showing from LeBron James wasn't nearly enough for the short-handed Lakers, who played without eight-time All-Star Anthony Davis because of a groin injury.
Notable Player Stats
- Devin Booker, G, PHO: 30 PTS, 7 REB, 5 AST
- Mikal Bridges, F, PHO: 13 PTS, 6 REB, 3 AST, 3 STL, 2 BLK
- Cameron Payne, G, PHO: 16 PTS, 4 REB
- LeBron James, F, LAL: 24 PTS, 7 AST, 5 REB, 6-of-10 3PT
- Kyle Kuzma, F, LAL: 15 PTS
Suns Dominant but CP3 Injury Looms
It's hard to script a better opportunity for a team to put the defending champions on the brink of elimination than what Phoenix faced Tuesday.
Not only was Davis out, but the Suns had all the momentum after taking home-court advantage back with the Game 4 win in Los Angeles. Chris Paul also looked as healthy as he has all series after suffering a shoulder injury in Game 1, and Booker and Deandre Ayton have both looked excellent at times in this series.
Excellent would be an understatement for how Phoenix looked right out of the gates.
Booker poured in 18 points in the first quarter alone while hitting from deep and attacking the basket, Cameron Payne provided an immediate spark with his ability to shoot from the outside and blow past defenders off the bounce, and Paul controlled the tempo every time he had the ball in his hands.
The result was a stunning 30-point lead at the half, and the Suns continued to roll in the third quarter until all the positive vibes came to a screeching halt.
Wesley Matthews hit Paul with an elbow to his back on a hard box out, and the star point guard immediately fell to the floor while grabbing his shoulder. The Phoenix fans went silent as the prospect of having to close out a LeBron-led team without their emotional leader became a significant concern.
The Suns are good enough to win the title if Paul is healthy. They may not escape the first round if he's not.
Lakers Overwhelmed Without Anthony Davis
"These shoulders are built for a reason," LeBron told reporters prior to Game 5 when asked about playing without Davis. "If there is going to be some more put on them, so be it. Win, lose or draw, I'm ready for the challenge."
And what a challenge it was.
The Lakers looked absolutely lost on offense without Davis in the first half as James struggled from the field and the supporting cast appeared overwhelmed for stretches. They managed an abysmal 10 points in the second quarter alone as Phoenix swarmed the King and rotated quickly enough to bother outside shooters.
That a Los Angeles squad that finished the season just 24th in the league in offensive rating, per NBA.com, had issues on that end of the floor wasn't particularly surprising, but the level of ineffectiveness was disarming.
The Lakers needed a Superman performance from James to have a chance, and that never came. He did what he could be catching fire from three-point range in the third quarter, but it was an uphill battle from the start.
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope was also ruled out with a left knee contusion in the second half, which is the same injury that kept him sidelined for Game 4.
Los Angeles still has the championship experience and talent to win two more games in this series, but it will need a much better effort than Tuesday's contest.
What's Next?
The series shifts back to Los Angeles for Thursday's Game 6.
