Lakers News: LA May Have Had Secret Weapon Against Suns Wednesday

And some Lakers players noticed.

Last night, your Los Angeles Lakers took 20 fewer field goals than their opponents, the visiting Phoenix Suns, made four fewer three-pointers, and saw Phoenix outshine them in points scored off turnovers, 27-18. The Suns' much-maligned bench also outscored the Lakers' reserves 35-25.

So why did the Lakers win by double digits, 122-111?

Three LA starters scored 25+ efficient points apiece: center Anthony Davis (27 points on 10-of-18 shooting from the floor and 7-of-10 shooting from the charity stripe), point guard D'Angelo Russell (26 points on 9-of-13 shooting from the floor and 5-of-7 shooting from the free throw line), and shooting guard Austin Reaves (25 points on 6-of-10 shooting from the floor and 12-of-13 free throw shooting). 

That was certainly part of it.

But there's no denying that a certain someone sure seemed to favor one team over the other in the free throw battle. So much so that D'Angelo Russell even made mention of it in a team timeout, as captured by the attendant ESPN crew:

"Scott Foster reffing y'all... Scott Foster."

D'Angelo Russell during a Lakers timeout 😂pic.twitter.com/QyXApAa7DY

— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) March 23, 2023

Foster has been a longtime nemesis of Suns star point guard Chris Paul. At one point last year, Chris Paul had lost 14 consecutive playoff games officiated by Foster.

Last night, the Lakers got 26 more free throw tries than the Suns. LA went 36-of-46 from the charity stripe while Phoenix went 15-of-20 from the foul line. So even in made free throws, that's a 21-point advantage. It certainly didn't hurt.

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