Lakers lose to Mavs in Anthony Davis’ return.
Prior to tonight’s return to the Lakers lineup, Anthony Davis missed the previous 30 games due to a calf strain that sidelined him since Valentine’s Day. The two months anticipated return of Anthony Davis was spoiled tonight as the Lakers lost on the road to the Dallas Mavericks 115–110. With tonight’s loss to the Mavs, the Lakers record moves to 35–24 still keeping them in 5th place as they try to stay afloat in the Western Conference with the playoffs looming.
In Anthony Davis’ welcome back, it was known that he would need at least a couple of games to get back into game shape and shake the rust off from two months of no game time. In his return, Davis finished with 4 points on 2 for 10 (20%) shooting from the field. Davis also added 4 rebounds, 1 block, and 1 steal in his 16 minutes of action. Anthony Davis said he didn’t think about his injury at all during the game and was able to just go out and play. Physically, he said he felt good in his first game action since Feb. 14.
“I just went out there and played. It kind of limits what you can do when you’re thinking about your injury.”
It was great to see Anthony Davis back in action after his two-month absence and he was just as excited as every Laker fan explaining:
“It was just fun to be out there again, a long time coming so I was just excited to be out there.”
Tonight the Lakers weren’t able to shake the often foul calling night from the officials. The Lakers were doubled by the Mavs in free throw attempts with the Lakers attempting 17 free throws compared to the Mavs 2nd most of the season with 36. The Lakers were called for 28 total fouls from officials tonight compared to the Mavs 15. The Mavs had 26 points come from the foul line as they shot 72.2% from the line going 26 for 36 with the Lakers missing only 3 shots from the charity strike going 14 for 17 (82.4%). Mavs Luka Doncic was the main focal problem in tonight’s loss for the Lakers as he finished with a game-high 30 points, 9 rebounds, and 8 assists on 9 of 21 (42.8%) shooting from the field.
The return of Anthony Davis took a lot of pressure off of players in the Lakers lineup as they were looked at heavily to bring some offensive firepower in his absence. In tonight’s loss, the Lakers had one of their hottest performances of the season come from their backcourt tonight. The Lakers backcourt of Dennis Schröder and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope combined for 54 points. In 34 minutes of action, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope scored a Laker high 29 points on 6 for 12 (50%) shooting from the three-point arc and 9 for 17 (52.9) shooting total.
After tonight’s loss Lakers head coach Frank Vogel said tonight was arguably the best game Dennis Schröder has ever had as a Laker but Schröder noted that since it came in a loss, it wasn’t good enough. In the Lakers defeated effort Schröder finished with a stat line of 25 points and 13 assists on 9 for 13 (69.2%) shooting from the field goal. Tonight’s double-double performance was the 4th time this season he has notched a double-double for the Lakers.
One of the biggest anticipated reasons for the return of Anthony Davis was due to the look of the new front-court duo of Andre Drummond and Anthony Davis. With Davis and Drummond on the court at the same time, it gives Drummond room to crash the boards on both sides of the court. That showed tonight as Drummond finished with 19 rebounds and 14 points on 5 of 10 (50%) shooting. Drummond also added 3 blocks and 3 assists with a plus/minus of +14 in his 31 minutes of action. Drummond spoke on playing with Anthony Davis for the first time saying:
“It was a surreal moment for me, it felt like we were kids again playing USA basketball.”
Drummond also added his thought’s of the future look of the Lakers when Anthony Davis is off of a 15-minute game restriction saying:
“It’s going to be crazy when he gets back to full form and he’s able to play those 30–35 minutes on the court. Our defense is going to be very scary.”
The Lakers will continue their two-game series, this Saturday against the Mavs. Tonight’s win for the Mavs moved their record 32–26 tying the Trailblazers who currently are in 6th place as the Mavs are behind them in 7th. Look for the Mavs to come out with a lot of energy to get to that 6th place spot as the Lakers try to stay afloat who are right in front of them in 5th place.