Lakers: Thomas Bryant Explains Halftime Chat That Led To Insane Comeback In Portland

The LA big man notched a 31-point, 14-rebound double-double.

Things were looking pretty dire Sunday night for your Los Angeles Lakers in Portland. LA trailed by 25 points, 71-46, at halftime against the Trail Blazers, thanks largely to a miserable 13-point second quarter performance.

Starting in the third quarter, however, all that changed. Los Angeles looked like a totally different team, re-engaged defensively with more purpose offensively. The Lakers would proceed to torch the Trail Blazers the rest of the way, outscoring the team 75-41 in the contest's final two quarters to win 121-112 on the road.

Several LA players deserve credit for the comeback. The two-way play of LA All-Star LeBron James (37 points, 11 rebounds) and starting point guard Dennis Schröder (24 points, including two huge late threes) were a big part of the night's success. But Thomas Bryant, the team's starting center as Anthony Davis continues to rehabilitate his right foot stress injury, may have just been the game's MVP.

Bryant tied his all-time career high in points scored with 31, achieved on 12-of-15 shooting from the field (including 4-of-5 from deep), and also chipped in 14 rebounds to boot. 

Following the game, he spoke with Mike Trudell of Spectrum SportsNet about how a conversation during halftime helped motivate LA to completely turn things around in the third quarter and beyond.

"We all came together at halftime and we thought to ourselves, we have to play better in the second half." @nolimittb31 with @LakersReporter following his 31-point performance in Portland. pic.twitter.com/KSsxXaPCT0

— Spectrum SportsNet (@SpectrumSN) January 23, 2023

"You know we all came together at halftime and we thought to ourselves, 'We have to play better in the second half.' That second quarter got away from us. We wanted to come out [with] better poise, better defense, better talk, better communication out there in the second half."

Bryant grabbed two absolutely essential offensive rebounds and put back both tries for hard-fought dunks during crunch time against the Wizards to help the Lakers maintain their lead. 

"I just saw myself trying to be aggressive for my team out there," Bryant remarked. "I try to hit the boards as much as I can to get my team an extra possession, and luckily it went my way."