Schedule and 2020-21 Results
Regular Season Records: Phoenix 51-21, Los Angeles Lakers 42-30
Game 1 on Sunday, 23 May: Los Angeles Lakers lose at Phoenix, 99-pts-90
Game 2 on Tuesday, 25 May: Los Angeles Lakers win at Phoenix, 109-pts-102
Game 3 on Thursday, 27 May: Phoenix loses at Los Angeles Lakers, 109-pts-95
Game 4 on Sunday, 30 May: Phoenix wins at Los Angeles Lakers, 100-pts-92
Game 5 on Tuesday, 1 June: Los Angeles Lakers lose at Phoenix, 115-pts-85
Game 6 on Thursday, 3 June: Phoenix wins at Los Angeles Lakers, 113-pts-100

SERIES NOTES:

After Game 6: The Phoenix Suns visited and defeated the Los Angeles Lakers 113-pts-100 to complete a 4-games-2 best-of-7 MLB/NBA/NHL playoff series 1472 victory. With the series 1472 win, the Phoenix Suns improve their best-of-7 NBA playoff series record to 16-20 overall and 5-2 in the Preliminary round. With the series 1472 loss, the Los Angeles Lakers see their best-of-7 NBA playoff series record fall to 72-32 overall and 8-4 in the Preliminary round. The win order for the victorious Phoenix Suns in series 1472 was WLLWWW: Series 1472 thus becomes the second NBA Preliminary-round series, the ninth NBA series (all rounds), and the 41st MLB/NBA/NHL series (all rounds) to follow that win order to completion. The series 1472 loss ends a fifteen-series winning streak by the Los Angeles Lakers upon having led a best-of-7 NBA playoff series 2-games-1, and ends an eight-series winning streak by the Lakers upon having been tied 2-games-all in a best-of-7 NBA playoff series.

After Game 5: The Phoenix Suns hosted and topped the Los Angeles Lakers 115-pts-85 to take a best-of-7 MLB/NBA/NHL playoff series 1472 lead of 3-games-2. When leading a best-of-7 MLB/NBA/NHL playoff series 3-games-2, the Phoenix Suns have a series record of 7-3 and a Game 6 record of 5-5. When trailing a best-of-7 MLB/NBA/NHL playoff series 3-games-2, the Los Angeles Lakers have a series record of 4-8 and a Game 6 record of 7-5. Series 1472 Game 5 was the 571st best-of-7 NBA playoff game for the Lakers as the Los Angeles Lakers, and their 30-point half-time deficit in it ties Game 1 of the 1985 NBA Finals (in Boston against the Celtics) for the largest half-time deficit experienced by the Lakers as the Los Angeles Lakers.

After Game 4: The Phoenix Suns visited and topped the Los Angeles Lakers 100-pts-92 to tie best-of-7 MLB/NBA/NHL playoff series 1472 at 2-games-all. When tied 2-games-all in a best-of-7 MLB/NBA/NHL playoff series, the Phoenix Suns have a series record of 6-8 and a Game 5 record of 6-8, while the Los Angeles Lakers have a series record of 23-7 and a Game 5 record of 23-7. Tied 2-games-all in a best-of-7 NBA playoff series, the Los Angeles Lakers have an active eight-series winning streak.

After Game 3: The Los Angeles Lakers hosted and defeated the Phoenix Suns 109-pts-95 to take a best-of-7 MLB/NBA/NHL playoff series 1472 lead of 2-games-1. When leading a best-of-7 MLB/NBA/NHL playoff series 2-games-1, the Los Angeles Lakers have a series record of 46-5 (with an active fifteen-series winning streak) and a Game 4 record of 29-22 (with an active five-Game 4 winning streak). When trailing a best-of-7 MLB/NBA/NHL playoff series 2-games-1, the Phoenix Suns have a series record of 2-11 and a Game 4 record of 8-5.

After Game 2: The Los Angeles Lakers visited and defeated the Phoenix Suns 109-pts-102 to tie best-of-7 MLB/NBA/NHL playoff series 1472 at 1-game-all. When tied 1-game-all in a best-of-7 MLB/NBA/NHL playoff series, the Phoenix Suns have a series record of 11-5 and a Game 3 record of 10-6, while the Los Angeles Lakers have a series record of 26-12 (with an active six-series winning streak) and a Game 3 record of 26-12 (with an active seven-Game 3 winning streak).

After Game 1: The Phoenix Suns hosted and bested the Los Angeles Lakers 99-pts-90 to take a best-of-7 MLB/NBA/NHL playoff series 1472 lead of 1-game-nil. When leading a best-of-7 MLB/NBA/NHL playoff series 1-game-nil, the Phoenix Suns have a series record of 11-5 and a Game 2 record of 6-10. When trailing a best-of-7 MLB/NBA/NHL playoff series 1-game-nil, the Los Angeles Lakers have a series record of 13-24 and a Game 2 record of 17-20. Trailing a best-of-7 NBA playoff series 1-game-nil (as they now do in series 1472), the Los Angeles Lakers have seen their Game 2 outcome presage their series outcome in their last nine such series (four wins, five losses).

Pre-series assessment: In the 2020-21 NBA regular season, the Phoenix Suns finished nine games ahead of the Los Angeles Lakers. From 1947 through the 2020 NBA Finals round, when NBA teams led their best-of-7 playoff series opponents by nine regular-season games, they have posted a best-of-7 playoff series record of 26-4 (.867) in those series against those opponents. MLB/NBA/NHL best-of-7 playoff series 1472 is the 36th best-of-7 NBA playoff series for the Phoenix Suns, and the 104th for the Los Angeles Lakers. In best-of-7 NBA playoff series, the Phoenix Suns have an all-rounds series record of 15-20, a Preliminary-round series record of 4-2, and a Game 1 record of 16-19, while the Los Angeles Lakers have an all-rounds series record of 72-31 (with an active four-series winning streak befitting a defending NBA champion), a Preliminary-round series record of 8-3, and a Game 1 record of 66-37. Series 1472 is the eleventh best-of-7 NBA playoff series meeting between the Phoenix Suns and the Los Angeles Lakers. The Los Angeles Lakers defeated the Phoenix Suns in seven of their previous ten best-of-7 NBA playoff series meetings; their last best-of-7 NBA playoff series meeting was series 1117 (won by the Lakers in the 2010 NBA Semifinals). The Phoenix Suns in series 1472 return to best-of-7 NBA playoff action for the first time since series 1117, in the 2010 NBA Semifinals in a loss to the Los Angeles Lakers.