Lakers' LeBron James (ankle) is listed out vs. Warriors on Thursday.
Anthony Davis has carried the Los Angeles Lakers when LeBron James is out
NBASaturday, 24 February 2024 at 08:00
On Thursday night, the Los Angeles Lakers took on the Golden State Warriors without LeBron James. It is no secret that James is the team's most important star and they often struggle without him. Sure enough, the Lakers were overcome by the Warriors 128-110.
Even though LA lost the game, Anthony Davis did quite well, scoring 27 points and 14 rebounds. This wasn't the first time that Davis has stepped up without James. James has missed 7 games this season. Before Thursday's absence, Davis averaged 29.3 points, 12.2 rebounds, and 4.2 assists during those games. That is an impressive step up from his season average of 24.9 points, 12.2 rebounds, and 3.8 assists.
The Lakers are 3-4 without James this year, which shows that the team is doing better than they used to without him but they also still need him to really perform at the best of their abilities.
Thankfully for LA, both James and Davis have remained relatively healthy this season. In fact, AD has played in 53 games so far. If he participates in just four more matches, he will play more than he did last year. Davis hasn't been in more than 60 games since the 2019-20 championship season.
This is the most that the Lakers have gotten out of the James-Davis duo in years and yet the team is still just the ninth seed in the West. That means that if they are hoping to return to the Western Conference Finals, LA will need more than just healthy James and Davis.
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