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The Los Angeles Lakers got destroyed by the Phoenix Suns 115-85 on Tuesday night.
Phoenix essentially racked up a 30-point lead by halftime and then never looked back.
LeBron James finished the game with 24 points on 9-of-19 shooting from the field, seven assists and five rebounds. He was the lone Lakers starter to reach double-figures.
That said, James’ play isn’t what stole the headlines following the Lakers’ Game 5 defeat – it was his decision to abruptly leave the court midway through the fourth quarter.
5 minutes left in the game and LeBron has seen enough pic.twitter.com/JWbWNLAbje
— gifdsports (@gifdsports) June 2, 2021
So what’s the real reason James left early? Lakers head coach Frank Vogel answered that after the game.
“In terms of LeBron going in the back, LeBron had to start his treatment,” Vogel said.
“It doesn’t do any good for him to sit over there without getting worked on or beginning the treatment as soon as possible to help him get ready for Game 6.”
This has been a rough year for James and the Lakers. Injuries have been persistent throughout, and barring something amazing happening, they’ll likely be the reason the champs don’t repeat in 2021.
If the Lakers do ultimately get bounced by the Suns, it’ll be interesting to see what the ramifications of that are.
Currently, the organization has made it abundantly clear that it desperately wants to trade one of its stars, very much wants to keep another and is kind of lukewarm on a third.
If L.A. comes back and wins Game 6, a lot of this talk will go away. But if not – expect the chatter to get louder and louder in the offseason.
More must-reads:
- Lakers' LeBron James looking forward to challenge of Game 6 against Suns
- NBA world reacts to disastrous first-half performance by Lakers
- The 'NBA players with four or more championships' quiz
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