The Los Angeles Lakers got back on the right track after a disappointing showing in their second seeding game. Facing off against the Utah Jazz, Anthony Davis put the team on his back and the Lakers overcame some rough spots to leave with a 116-108 victory, clinching the top seed in the Western Conference.
Davis was absolutely unstoppable on Monday, finishing with 42 points, 12 rebounds, four assists and three steals, as he was determined to bounce back in a major way.
After getting things started for the Lakers, it was LeBron James showing off his amazing ball-handling abilities with the behind the back move and finishing the layup.
King moves for the easy finish! ???? #LakeShow pic.twitter.com/Q29dYQZ3nH
— Spectrum SportsNet (@SpectrumSN) August 4, 2020
And Davis contributed in every way, not just with his scoring and rebounding and not even only with his defense. One of the most forgotten parts of Davis’ game is his passing and playmaking ability, which was on display as well.
Davis showed that off in the second quarter finding Dwight Howard for the big man to big man lob and following that with an excellent look to Kentavious Caldwell-Pope for a layup as the Lakers looked to pull ahead.
Howard had his best game of the NBA restart, finishing with 11 points and seven rebounds off the bench. Caldwell-Pope added 10 points and two steals.
And once the Lakers got going offensively, their defensive effort picked up as well. Many doubt whether LeBron can still bring it especially on that end of the floor consistently and Royce O’Neal decided to test that out.
???? KING ???? PIN. pic.twitter.com/GuBO0Lbeav
— NBA (@NBA) August 4, 2020
The fourth quarter was where the Lakers really began to establish their dominance and it started with a floater from the newcomer JR Smith, his first official field goal with the team.
First swish for Swish ????
(????: @SpectrumSN & ESPN) pic.twitter.com/n77z7ifuCs
— Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) August 4, 2020
But in the end it was all about the dominance of Davis. The chemistry between he and LeBron was on full display as the two connected on their practically unguardable pick-and-roll.
James had nine assists to go along with 22 points and eight rebounds. But when the Jazz tried to make a late run, it was Davis who would convert a four-point play to put the game on ice and clinch the Lakers’ victory.
Next for the Lakers
The Lakers face their lone back-to-back of the NBA season restart, taking on the Oklahoma City Thunder on Wednesday at 3:30 p.m. PT before playing the Houston Rockets on Thursday at 6:00 p.m.
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