Anthony Davis has a relatively simple request for Los Angeles Lakers fans following the team’s Game 3 defeat to the Miami Heat.
That request? Please don’t panic.
“Trust me,” he said. “We’ll be fine.”
Miami defeated Los Angeles 115-104 on Sunday evening. Although the Lakers made multiple runs to keep the game reasonably close, they could never quite match the level of dominance and efficiency that had been on display through the first two games.
Davis struggled badly in this one, posting 15 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists and 0 blocks in 33 minutes of action. The Lakers big man dealt with foul trouble from the jump, and it impacted him on both sides of the floor. He finished the first quarter with zero points, two fouls and four turnovers, and things didn’t improve much from there.
“I just have to be better,” Davis said.
“Both ends of the floor. Foul trouble, bringing the energy to the team, the team relies on me bringing the energy to start the game, and when you pick up two fouls, guys come in earlier, things like that. So I just have to be better.”
LeBron James had a similarly inadequate game, by his standards. Although he filled out the stat line with 25 points, 10 rebounds and 8 assists, he also had 8 of the team’s 19 team turnovers.
Fans were divided. https://t.co/dT0wwJTRnb
— Game 7 (@game7__) October 5, 2020
After the fact, James insisted that they hadn’t let their guard down.
“I don’t ever feel like we let our guard down,” he said.
“Also, I don’t feel like we’re concerned. We’re not concerned. We know we can play a lot better. We have another opportunity to take a commanding lead on Tuesday. You relish that opportunity.”
Kyle Kuzma echoed that sentiment, also suggesting that the Lakers won’t let this loss get to them.
“We’re not perfect,” he said.
“No one’s perfect. You are not a perfect team, you are not a perfect individual. Everybody f—s up. Everybody makes mistakes. The biggest thing for us is keying in on what we need to do and then doing what we have done all year,” he continued.
“Our message to the team is we don’t like to lose two in a row. That’s been our goal — not for playoffs, but entire season long. Obviously, having a little letdown is great for us. We have been on a high, and for us, we got to respond. And I like our chances because of who we have on the team.”
LeBron is definitely making a statement with this one. https://t.co/xG1wQzZHmq
— Game 7 (@game7__) October 4, 2020
Markieff Morris, one of the few Lakers who actually rose to the occasion and delivered in Game 3, remained positive.
“I like how we respond after losing a game,” Morris said.
“We have great leaders. We’ll watch film tomorrow. There’s a lot of people that are going to get their ass chewed out, and we’ll respond better in Game 4.”
Game 4 between the Lakers and Heat is scheduled for Tuesday. If LA wins and takes a 3-1 series lead, then obviously all of Sunday’s failures will be washed away. However, if Miami pulls out the victory and evens up the series – suddenly things will get very interesting.
Related: Lakers Fans Create Odd Kyle Kuzma Petition
A graduate from the University of Texas, Anthony Amador has been credentialed to cover the Houston Texans, Dallas Cowboys, San Antonio Spurs, Dallas Mavericks and high school games all over the Lone Star State. Currently, his primary beats are the NBA, MLB, NFL and UFC.
