It was always going to take some time for Anthony Davis to get back to his normal self after missing so much time. But after a couple of weeks back on the floor, it is safe to say the Los Angeles Lakers’ big man is back to being one of the best players in the NBA.
Davis finished with 42 points, 12 rebounds, five assists, three steals and three blocks to lead the Lakers to a 123-110 victory over the Phoenix Suns on Sunday night. The victory ends a two-game losing streak for the Lakers, who remain in the seventh spot in the Western Conference one game behind the Portland Trail Blazers, who hold the tiebreaker.
Davis was outstanding from the beginning against a Suns team that had no one to truly bother him. He was aggressive against undersized defenders, as evidenced by his 17 free throw attempts, while also doing an excellent job of reading double-teams and finding shooters for open 3-point shots.
And the Lakers shooters were knocking those shots down as Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Ben McLemore knocked down four threes apiece. Caldwell-Pope finished with 17 points to go along with three steals while McLemore added 12.
Alex Caruso continued his aggressive play of late as well, also chipping in 17 points to go along with eight assists, three steals and was crucial in the Lakers hanging on down the stretch.
The Lakers never trailed in the game and led by as many as 23 points, including a 21-point lead heading to the fourth. But the Suns fought back led by a career-night from reserve guard Cameron Payne to cut the lead to single-digits late.
Caruso and Davis would make sure the Lakers came out on top however with clutch plays on both sides of the floor, capped off by an alley-oop to the big man from the point guard.
All three Lakers centers played and contributed on this night as well. Montrezl Harrell was the scorer of the bunch with 12 points while Andre Drummond grabbed 10 rebounds total with seven coming on the offensive end. Marc Gasol, meanwhile, added six rebounds and three assists.
Defensively, the Lakers were also locked in on Phoenix’s All-Star backcourt. Chris Paul and Devin Booker combined to shoot just 11-for-27 from the field and committed eight turnovers between them including five from Paul.
Next up for the Lakers
The Lakers have a pair of back-to-backs to end this regular season. First up they will host the New York Knicks and Houston Rockets on Tuesday and Wednesday before ending the season with trips to the Indiana Pacers and New Orleans Pelicans on Saturday and Sunday, respectively.
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