Walker’s feat makes LeBron James look like a lover
Los Angeles Lakers alpha players very softly: Anthony Davis (back) and LeBron James hugged Lonnie Walker
Quelle: AP/Marcio Jose Sanchez
In the NBA duel defending champions against record champions, the Los Angeles Lakers have all the cards in their hands. In the fourth game of the playoff series against the Golden State Warriors, the team pulls off a hard-fought home win. A feat by Lonnie Walker makes it possible.
DThis almost touching scene after the game expressed unspeakable gratitude. LeBron James grabbed Lonnie Walker’s head with his right hand, then laid his head in surrender on his teammate’s neck. The two were joined by Anthony Davis, who also snuggled his head against the left side of Walker’s face. Los Angeles Lakers superstars like two lovers at Walker’s side, it took a lot to get that much deference from the Lakers’ alpha players.
In fact, the 24-year-old shooting guard of the record champions in the NBA play-off duel against the Golden State Warriors succeeded in what only another great Lakers managed before him. Walker had 15 points, all of which he scored in the fourth quarter. He became the first Lakers player since Kobe Bryant to come off the bench with at least 15 points in a playoff game in the final quarter.
Not least because of this, his team still won 104:101 in the second half despite being twelve points behind and leads in the best-of-seven series after victories 3:1. Club legend Bryant, who died in a helicopter crash in January 2020 along with his second eldest daughter Gianna and seven other passengers, managed this feat against the Utah Jazz on May 8, 1997 – exactly 26 years before Walker’s gala performance. “We wouldn’t have won this game without Lonnie Walker, that’s for sure,” said James, who was his team’s top scorer with 27 points.
Curry’s unusually weak triple yield
Lakers coach Darvin Ham praised Walker for staying “committed, professional, fully focused and positive” despite the complicated state of the game. The best pitcher of the game was Warriors star Stephen Curry with 31 points, but an unusually weak three-point haul with just three goals in 14 attempts caused his team trouble. Anthony Davis contributed 23 points to the Lakers.
After a weak third quarter, the hosts, driven by Schröder’s energy, worked their way back in the final quarter and equalized to 84:84. The man from Braunschweig pushed the Warriors into turnovers with good defensive work. Because both teams missed many chances in attack, the game remained close and exciting until the end – thanks to Walker with the happy faces on the Lakers side.
The team is just one win away from making the Western Conference Finals. The next game will take place in San Francisco on Thursday night. “As tough as this game was, it’s only going to get tougher. We understand that, we know that,” James said ahead of the trip to Northern California.
The German national player Dennis Schröder, who scored ten points, also emphasized the importance of the upcoming game: “We now have three wins, that’s a great prerequisite and a great position, but we have to play game five as if we were 0: 3 behind,” he said.
And then to Dr. Müller welfare
Schröder hopes for a quick fourth win and thus enough time for a short trip to the doctor in Germany. “Then I’ll go to Dr. Müller-Wohlfahrt,” he announced after the coup against Golden State. For decades, Müller-Wohlfahrt also treated the footballers of the German national team and FC Bayern Munich, among others, and enjoys an excellent reputation among athletes. The 29-year-old from Braunschweig reported that he had problems with his Achilles tendon again.
With the Phoenix Suns tied 2-2 by the Denver Nuggets in the other Western Conference semifinals, the series lasts at least six games, and a win would give the Lakers a small break after five games. “One or two days would be good if I have a complete program there, I’m there for five to six hours and do treatment with him,” said Schröder. “Today it worked again, it was fine. But when I see Dr. Müller-Wohlfahrt, then it’s completely gone. I did that in the summer too.”
