Anthony Davis said he wanted to be more aggressive, and Frank Vogel said he wanted his star big man to shoot more threes, and while a lot of people don’t end up sticking to their New Year’s resolutions, Davis at least started off 2021 by doing plenty of both of his, dropping 34 points — including 4 threes — in the Lakers’ second straight road win over the Spurs, a 109-103 victory in San Antonio on Friday night.
Davis hit maybe his biggest triple of the night with just under three minutes remaining, calmly draining a three from the left wing to tie the game up at 103 before helping force a stop on the next two Spurs possessions before Kyle Kuzma gave the Lakers the lead on a tip-in of LeBron James’ miss. James then iced the game with one of his patented mid-range jumpers, and that was all she wrote. This was one of the uglier games the Lakers have played in aesthetically so far, but a win is a win, and this one will move the Lakers to 4-2 on the season.
In addition to Davis’ heroics, James was also his usual stellar self, feeling springy enough just two days after turning 36 to try an in-game back flip while also managing a 26-point, 11-rebound and 10-assist triple-double of his own.
Tired: LeBron could play tight end in the NFL.
— Silver Screen & Roll (@LakersSBN) January 2, 2021
Wired: LeBron could medal as an Olympic gymnast pic.twitter.com/Ny6DfTAFf0
The Lakers will have Saturday off to rest before playing the Grizzlies in Memphis on Sunday and Tuesday to finish out their first road trip of the season. Alex Caruso (health and safety protocols) has already been ruled out for his fourth missed game in a row, while the status of Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (ankle sprain) remains to be seen. Given that health uncertainty, this was a game the Lakers couldn’t really afford to drop. Happily for them, they managed to snatch a victory from the jaws of defeat, even if it wasn’t pretty.
For more Lakers talk, subscribe to the Silver Screen and Roll podcast feed on iTunes, Spotify, Stitcher or Google Podcasts. You can follow Harrison on Twitter at @hmfaigen.