Devin Booker amused by Lakers’ Anthony Davis saying Suns ‘got away with one’

Lakers big Anthony Davis commented that the reason L.A. lost to the Suns in the first round of the 2020-21 playoffs was him getting injured in Game 4. He said the Suns know that they “got away with one,” per ESPN’s Dave McMenamin.

The Suns, who won the first-round series in six games, pummeled the Lakers 140-111 following Davis’ statement.

Phoenix guard Devin Booker, who scored 30 points and had 10 assists on Sunday, said he was aware of the comments going into the game. He smiled and stated that they did not provide additional motivation for the Suns’ inspired performance.

“This was gonna happen anyways, I just think it’s funny,” Booker told reporters on Sunday. “If if was a fifth, we’d all be drunk … There are a lot of ifs in this game. You look at history along the lines, there’s something that comes up for every team during every season. So instead of just taking the high road you have to make a comment like that? It’s kind of funny.”

Center Deandre Ayton scored 23 points to pair with 16 rebounds on Sunday. He said he did not hear about the comments, but addressed them postgame.

“At the end of the day, we have to all come out and play,” Ayton said. “Injuries are a part of the game.”

"If if was a fifth, we'd all be drunk. … There's a lot of if's in this game. And you look at history along the lines, there's something that comes up for every team during every season. Instead of just taking the high route and going, you have to make a comment like that." pic.twitter.com/BxanohbOmf

— Kellan Olson (@KellanOlson) March 14, 2022

Both head coaches were asked about the scenario of Davis not getting injured before Sunday’s contest.

Suns head coach Monty Williams pointed out that Phoenix point guard Chris Paul injured his shoulder in Game 1 and was hampered for much of the series.

Lakers head coach Frank Vogel said he did not want to take anything away from the Suns’ playoff victory by buying into hypotheticals.

“We’ll never know,” Vogel told reporters. “I really don’t want to paint a picture that if he doesn’t get hurt, we win that series because I think that takes away from how good (the Suns) are … I don’t think it’s fair to make any assumptions.”

The Suns are 3-0 this season against the Lakers with three double-digit wins. The two sides will face each other in Phoenix on April 5 for their final meeting of the regular season.

Phoenix owns the top seed in the Western Conference with a 7.5-game lead over the field. Los Angeles owns the ninth spot in the standings. Phoenix and L.A. can meet in the first round again if the right cards fall.

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