The timer signaling for Anthony Davis to take his toes out of the purple ice bucket stored ringing, however nobody stopped it. Davis, eyes frozen and fixated on the door, didn’t transfer, his palms folded on his lap, the frustration from the night time filling all of the empty area within the locker room.
The Lakers hadn’t skilled a loss in Los Angeles this season, they usually undoubtedly hadn’t felt one fairly like this at any level this season.
Franz Wagner hit a game-winning three-pointer with 3.3 seconds left, giving the Magic a 119-118 win and ending the Lakers’ undefeated begin at residence.
Capturing with a two-point lead and 18.9 seconds left, Davis missed a pair of free throws that might’ve lifted the Lakers to their seventh consecutive win. As a substitute, Davis sat within the locker room in surprised stillness.
“We lost the game,” Davis stated quietly. “I missed three free throws down the stretch. Come down, hit a three, take the lead. My free throws are very important, very crucial. Missed them.”
It wasn’t simply Davis.
The Lakers had their probabilities with the shot that’s the one one simple sufficient to have the phrase “free” in entrance of it. However LeBron James break up on a late-game journey to the road. Austin Reaves, one of many Lakers’ finest shooters, missed two earlier in crunch time.
“We missed them. That’s really it,” Reaves stated.
The Lakers missed six free throws within the fourth quarter, reworking what may have been a hard-fought win right into a devastating loss.
“I go to a very dark place, literally,” Lakers coach JJ Redick stated of the best way he processes a loss like this. “It’s the basement. I turn the lights out and watch film from the game.”
The group had principally performed effectively towards the Magic, minus a clunky third quarter when a 10-point lead vanished as Orlando’s zone protection stalled the Lakers.
However James’ fourth-quarter magic — he scored 14 of his 31 factors within the last interval — appeared like it will be sufficient to assist them overcome. He discovered Davis on a full-court help that gave the Lakers a late three-point lead and put momentum on their aspect.
The misses on the foul line, although, stored the Magic alive, and Wagner, within the midst of a breakout season, hit the most important shot to silence the sector.
“Didn’t love the thought process and the mindset when Wagner hit the three,” Redick stated.
Davis, who led the Lakers with 39 factors, badly missed a contested shot on the buzzer.
“I mean, any loss is frustrating,” Davis stated. “More frustrating for me because I’m the one who missed the free throws… but any loss is frustrating.”
The Lakers host Denver, the group that has eradicated them the final two postseasons, on Saturday night time.
“We had our chances. They played well,” James stated. “We played well. I mean, obviously, the biggest bucket of the night, obviously, was Franz. But we put ourselves in a position to win the game and we just didn’t come through.”
