Los Angeles Lakers began their postseason with a 99-90 defeat to second-seeded Phoenix Sun. Lakers’ Kentavious Caldwell-Pope has a rather interesting take behind the lacklustre performance where they failed to keep Devin Booker and co. at bay.
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/69340824/1319728818.0.jpg "“It was an early noon game,”: Kentavious Caldwell-Pope cites early tip-off time behind loss in Game 1 3")
The defending champions were outscored across all the quarters as LeBron James and Anthony Davis were far from their usual best.
Caldwell-Pope, who had seven points on the court, claimed that the timing of the match might have played a part behind their flat outing at the Vivint Arena.
“It was an early noon game,” he said, per Lakers writer Harrison Faigen. “Guys were just waking up, maybe… I feel like the energy wasn’t there… We’ve got to come prepared.”
Caldwell-Pope also added that the Lakers were not ready to counter the Suns and believes that they can bounce back in the series.
“I feel like we wasn’t ready for what they had for us… I just believe in the guys that we have and I feel like we can get the job done.”
Much like the Lakers, the Suns were subjected to the same tip-off time, but the difference in the level of performance was staggering. The factor of travelling and time zone was minimal as well, with Arizona being only a couple of hours away from Los Angeles.
On the other hand, Anthony Davis had shouldered the responsibility for the loss after a dismal outing on the court. It was an unexpected outing from Davis, who had recorded 42 points and 12 rebounds earlier this month against the same opponents.
“It just kind of took me out of rhythm, but that’s on me. I still got to find ways to make plays on that end of the floor, offensively. So, like I said, it’s on me. I’m not too worried about my performance. I know I’ll be better. I know we’ll be better in Game 2.” Davis added
Game 2 is slated for a 7 PM local tip-off time
The Lakers must step with a far-better performance to avoid a 2-0 trail heading into the Staples Center for the next two games.
The second game of the series will be underway in a few hours, and like last time, it won’t be a noon time tip-off.
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