With 23.6 seconds remaining in overtime, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope airballed a 3-pointer with the Los Angeles Lakers only down by one point to the Houston Rockets.
While there were many sequences that ultimately led to the Lakers losing their 21-point lead, they still had numerous chances to win the game and finish 2-0 on their road trip.
Along with not necessarily needing a 3-pointer at that particular time, Caldwell-Pope was 0-of-6 from that deep before his airball.
Following the frustrating 138-134 loss to the Rockets, Caldwell-Pope revealed the play was designed for him, via Spectrum SportsNet:
“The play was designed for me to come off (a screen) and shoot the ball anyways. I didn’t get any lift on it, no legs. Just tried to make something happen.”
While Caldwell-Pope has shown he is not afraid of these type of moments, the reality is he does not need to shoot every time a play is called for him. As the 25-year-old acknowledged, he didn’t have the legs for a shot that was well behind the line.
Thus, Caldwell-Pope was better off passing it to Brandon Ingram, who made four clutch shots in overtime.
Without LeBron James and Rajon Rondo, the Lakers have gone through growing pains especially in late-game situations. As their two leaders have been cleared to return to practice, all of the attention is on Lonzo Ball, who is scheduled for an MRI after suffering a sprained ankle against the Rockets.
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