The Los Angeles Lakers surprisingly dropped Game 1 of their playoff series against the Portland Trail Blazers on Tuesday.
Lakers forward Kyle Kuzma recently expressed how the team can respond and regain its shooting form for Game 2.
“If we can just calm down and take our time, because the shots are going to be there all series,” Kuzma said. “They want to crowd the paint, so we have to hit shots. You’ve got to erase your memory. That’s part of being confident. If you miss 10 in a row or make 10 in a row, you’ve got to forget about them and keep shooting.
“I like to say just shoot until you get hot. I think we have that capability.”
Kuzma, 25, put up a solid 14 points and eight boards in the Lakers’ 100-93 loss to the Blazers on Tuesday.
The Lakers heavily struggled shooting the ball in that game and recored a horrid 5-of-32 shooting from distance.
Superstar LeBron James was the only Lakers player who provided a stellar performance. The three-time champion put up 23 points, 17 boards and 16 assists in 41 minutes of action on Tuesday.
However, his fellow starters weren’t of much help. Anthony Davis, Danny Green and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope had subpar performances in the Lakers’ defeat.
While Davis gathered 28 points and 11 rebounds, he shot an abysmal 8-of-24 from the field and missed all five of his 3-point attempts. He got bashed by infamous sports pundit Skip Bayless for the uneven outing.
Caldwell-Pope collected one point on 0-of-9 shooting in 29 minutes for the Lakers. Green put up 10 points and two rebounds on 4-of-12 shooting from the field. They were both crucified for their unhelpful displays.
Game 2 between the Lakers and Trail Blazers takes place on Thursday evening.
