The dominant victory of the Lakers, who sweep away the Grizzlies without leaving them the slightest chance to force game-7. The yellow-purples play a perfect game on both sides of the pitch, led in attack by an excellent D’Angelo Russell and in defense by an incredible Anthony Davis, but all the yellow-purples gave their contribution for a victory as clear as it was crushing from the first to the last quarter, breaking through the 30 points lead in a third quarter from 41-25.
D’Angelo Russell starts strong and never stops, making his career high in the playoffs with 31 points (10 in the first quarter alone) missing just 5 of 17 shots attempted in the 30 minutes he was on the field, with 5/ 9 from long-range. To give him a hand is a surgical LeBron James, who shows up at the arena much earlier than his habits (at 2.20 pm he was already on the field shooting, with the game starting at 8 pm) and ends with 22 points, 5 rebounds and 6 assists, enjoying the last quarter on the bench alongside Anthony Davis.
If the match lasted so little, it is in fact thanks to AD, who dominates the paint even beyond what the excellent figures say (16 points, 14 rebounds, and 5 blocks with 6/9 shooting and 4/4 free). Memphis quickly understands that under the basket there is no air and turns wide, finding himself forced to take 38 shots from long range (only 12 on target) and above all shooting a horrible 16/50 in the Lakers area, thanks to the overwhelming presence of Davis who completely dominated the game and the series in the defensive half.
The Grizzlies’ season thus ends in fierce disappointment, especially due to the poor performance of the three stars. Ja Morant finishes with just 10 points, 5 rebounds and 6 assists on 3/16 from the field, Desmond Bane hits just two more shots for a final 15 points, and Jaren Jackson Jr. finishes with 3/12 for 14 points. Dillon Brooks scores all of his 10 points in the first half and then disappears into the background like all his teammates, with Santi Aldama the team’s best scorer at 16. Far too little, net of Adams and Clarke’s injuries.