4 fatal flaws Lakers must fix before Game 2 vs. Suns
By Scott Rogust
The Los Angeles Lakers were defeated 99-90 by the Phoenix Suns in Game 1 of their first-round series. In the process, they exposed four fatal flaws that could very well do them in.
The Los Angeles Lakers managed to escape the play-in round with the seventh-seed following a clutch three-point shot by LeBron James. While that was all well and good, they had to face off against the second-seeded Phoenix Suns in the first-round. The Lakers may have had the Suns’ number in the past, but this is an entirely different team.
Los Angeles learned just that on Sunday, as they fell 99-90 to the Suns to fall to an early 1-0 series deficit. While it is only one game, the Lakers exposed some flaws that could very well send them out of the playoffs earlier than they had expected. Well, four to be exact.
4. Lakers can’t capitalize off turnovers
This season, the Lakers have thrived off forcing turnovers. Through 72 games, they averaged 17.4 points off turnovers, which ranks 12th in the entire NBA, per the league’s official website. Surely, they would use that to their advantage for Game 1.
The exact opposite happened on Sunday afternoon. In Game 1, the Suns had 14 turnovers, which certainly could have doomed the second-seed. But the Suns could breath a sigh of relief, as the Lakers only scored 18 points off said turnovers.
as discussed on the show last night: biggest storyline im following during Suns/Lakers is the amount of Suns turnovers per game, as we all know points off of them is how the Lakers make their money.
— Rob Perez (@WorldWideWob) May 23, 2021
PHX SEASON AVG: 12.5
GAME 1: 14 TOs, only 18 Lakers Points off of them.
W.
If Los Angeles feasted off the turnovers, we could be talking about a different end result. Instead, the Lakers’ dismal performance helped the Suns avoid potential disaster.