A massive LeBron James 4th quarter and another huge late game three-pointer from Austin Reaves propelled the Lakers past the Suns with a 106-103 victory on Tuesday night. The win punches the Lakers ticket for Las Vegas, joining the Pelicans, Pacers, and Bucks as the four semifinalists for the NBA's inaugural In-Season Tournament.
This was a game where both sides showed what can make them special and difficult to beat on any given night.
On the Lakers side, that started on the defensive side of the ball where they ramped up their ball pressure at the point of attack and when defending the Suns' ball screen actions, pushing up higher to the level of the screen to really try to disrupt Phoenix's shooters and turn them into passers. And then behind that pressure, the Lakers leveraged their length and athleticism on the wing to jump passing lanes to get deflections and steals to force Suns turnovers.
The Lakers were able to turn the Suns over 10 times in the first quarter and 22 times overall, scoring 25 points off those miscues by getting out in transition where they could create good shots at the rim via runouts and fast breaks.
Besides forcing turnovers, the Lakers also used their superior size and physicality to win the battle of the paint offensively, not only by hammering the Suns on drives, post ups, and dives out of the pick-and-roll, but by attacking the offensive glass with a vengeance.
The Lakers grabbed 21 offensive rebounds on the night, with 12 of those coming in the first half. Anthony Davis was particularly impactful on the O-glass, with nine of his 15 total rebounds coming off Lakers misses.
Davis was great at taking advantage of the Suns smaller lineups or direct matchups with their bigs with equal effectiveness, walking right into the paint, and then shedding Suns defenders to get to the ball where he would then finish with authority. Davis finished the night with 27 points to go along with all those rebounds, with most of that damage coming in the first half (20 points).
With the defense rolling and AD dominating the paint on both ends, the Lakers took a double-digit lead into the half, but the Suns are a contending team because of their ability to hit shots and explode offensively, and they showed just that in the 3rd quarter.
Phoenix quickly cut into the Lakers 12-point lead, turning the tables to force a turnover of their own on LA's first possession and racing out for a layup. And then, systematically over the next 12 minutes, the Suns did what they do best -- hit jump shots to keep chipping way.
Kevin Durant connected on five of his six shots in the 3rd quarter (2-2 from three) to score 12 of his 31 points for the game while bringing his team back. Joining him was Grayson Allen, who scored 11 points of his own in the 3rd while connecting on four of his five shots (3-4 from three). By the time the quarter was over, the Suns deficit was down to just two points and whatever momentum the Lakers had established in the first half was all the way gone.
In the 4th quarter, however, the Lakers would do some fighting back of their own and retake control. And key to it all was LeBron James.
LeBron scored 15 points in the final quarter, going 5-of-9 from the field and 4-of-4 from the free throw line. LeBron relentlessly hunted shots in the paint, attacking off the dribble out of isolation and in the pick-and-roll to swoop in and score at the rim over and over again. At one point, James darted to his left and got off an underhanded scoop shot that avoided the outstretched arm of Jusuf Nurkic for a crucial layup that pushed the Lakers lead up to five with just over two minutes left -- the final two of his 31 points on the night (to go along with 11 assists and eight rebounds).
But, the Suns would not go away and would get the game back to within a single point with just under a half-minute remaining. Which is where Austin Reaves would come in.
Shooting 0-5 to that point in the quarter, Reaves ignored all that to take the lead on the Lakers most critical offensive possession of the game. With the game hanging in the balance, Reaves got the ball on the right wing to run a pick-and-roll with Davis. As he used the ball screen, both Suns defenders took a step towards the paint to go with Davis, and in that instant Reaves pulled his dribble back to create space and delivered a dagger of a three-point shot -- and his 20th point on the night -- to put the Lakers up by four.
After this it became a free throw game and despite AD going 1-2 in his final trip to the line, the Lakers were able to hold on after a long Durant three fell short. The win moves the Lakers to 3-0 vs. the Suns this season, securing any potential future tiebreakers with their division and conference rivals.
But that is a story for another day. For now, the Lakers are happy just to move onto Las Vegas where they will face the Pelicans on Thursday night for a chance to advance to the finals and compete for the In-Season Tournament title.