Already without Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, the Los Angeles Lakers’ injury woes worsened when Anthony Davis was ruled out for the second half with a groin injury which resulted in a 100-92 Game 4 loss to the Phoenix Suns.
It was a slow start for the Lakers as they failed to get anything to go from the perimeter, though LeBron James was able to get all the way to the cup. James added to his point total, nailing a 3-pointer over Deandre Ayton and finishing another layup to give Los Angeles a 12-8 advantage.
Anthony Davis finally got a bucket to go after hitting a floater and later assisted on a Marc Gasol three. Dennis Schroder also saw shots start to fall in the final stretch of the first and Gasol tipped in a Kyle Kuzma miss to give the Lakers a 24-23 lead heading into the second.
Kuzma opened the quarter with a lob to Drummond and followed it up with a three, while James made a slick pass to Ben McLemore from deep that forced a Phoenix timeout. James electrified the crowd with a spin and dunk over Cameron Johnson, but Devin Booker was able to keep the Suns within striking distance with his shotmaking and ability to get to the free-throw line.
Perhaps the highlight of the half was a fastbreak for the Lakers that ended with Alex Caruso throwing one off the backboard to James for a dunk.
Phoenix recaptured the lead though thanks to Booker, who was able to bait several foul calls. Caruso answered with a corner 3-pointer and it was a back-and-forth finish to the half, but the Lakers found themselves trailing 54-50.
Kuzma got the start for Davis, who was dealing with a groin injury and was ruled out for the game, allowing the Suns to take advantage by racing out to a 10-point lead. Deandre Ayton torched the Lakers on the boards, and things got worse as the team could not get anything right on either end.
Los Angeles found some life with Schroder and Markieff Morris playing hard, but had trouble cutting into the deficit. The Lakers bench could not jumpstart the team and as a result they went into the final period down
Montrezl Harrell got his first minutes since Game 1, but struggled guarding actions between Chris Paul and Ayton. James breathed some life into L.A. with his attacks to the basket, but Phoenix maintained a double-digit lead.
Gasol provided a spark with his play on both ends, while James seemed fired up after taking a hard foul from Jae Crowder. The Lakers looked like they could make a last-gasp run, but a Crowder three ended up being the dagger.
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