Anthony Davis said that the Los Angeles Lakers needed to build off their win against the L.A. Clippers, and he and the team had a great opportunity to do so when the Toronto Raptors came to visit.
The new-look Raptors have been playing well since they acquired Immanuel Quickley and RJ Barrett, but they were without Jakob Poeltl, who is dealing with an ankle injury. Without Poeltl, Toronto was forced to go small against Los Angeles, which played right into the latter’s hands.
Against a smaller Raptors starting lineup, Davis got off to a hot start as he scored 16 points in the first quarter. Davis was a menace in the paint as he rolled to the rim for dunks or simply shot over defenders. Toronto shifted all their defensive attention to Davis the rest of the way which led to a scoring lull from the star big man.
However, Davis once again asserted himself in the fourth quarter as the guards did a better job of giving him the basketball. With the game on the line in the final minutes, Davis made plays on both ends and hit several clutch free throws to give the purple and gold their second win in a row.
Davis set a new season-high in points with 41 points to go along with 11 rebounds, six assists and one block. He shot 13-of-17 from the field, including 2-of-2 from distance and 13-of-14 from the free throw line.
LeBron James was happy to defer to Davis early in the game as he only attempted one shot but did dish out five assists. However, with the Raptors trying to slow down Davis James began to look for his shot more.
Like Davis, James saved his best for the fourth quarter as he hit several clutch shots including a 3-pointer that tied things up. The King recorded 22 points, 12 assists and and five rebounds.
Christian Wood had one of his best games of the season off the bench, adding some scoring punch and outside shooting when the Lakers needed it. Wood led the bench in scoring with 14 points.
Cam Reddish finally broke out of his shooting slump, knocking down four of his six attempts from distance. However, he was forced out of the game in the fourth after taking an elbow from Quickley.
What’s next for Lakers
The Lakers have one more home game on Thursday against the Phoenix Suns before they head back on the road this Saturday against the Utah Jazz.
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