During the first quarter of Friday’s game between the Los Angeles Lakers and Denver Nuggets, Anthony Davis looked to be limping and in some discomfort.
He continued to play in the first half, but he was ruled out for the second half with what was called a right foot injury, and it looked like the Lakers were in great danger of losing to Denver.
They fell behind by 12 points in the third quarter, but they went on a massive 49-19 run late in the period and in the fourth quarter to turn the game into a happy rout.
Los Angeles got the job done with its biggest strength – its transition game – by rolling up 28 fast-break points, and its bench was huge with 58 points.
However, the concern is now about Davis and his right foot, especially given his history of being injury-prone.
Anthony Davis: Incomplete
Before Davis went out with his injury, he posted 10 points on 4-of-7 shooting, four rebounds, two assists, one steal and one blocked shot. Needless to say, the Lakers will be in a world of trouble if he has to miss more than a couple of games, especially given his phenomenal play the last month or so.
LeBron James: A
After an uneven October and November, James is starting to look like his old self these days. He shot 13-of-20 from the field on Friday to score 30 points while grabbing nine rebounds and adding four assists and two steals.
Physically, he has looked outstanding the last two games, and he threw down multiple dunks versus the Nuggets, including one on a fast break in the second quarter where he took off from the dotted line.
Patrick Beverley: B+/A-
This was the best overall game anyone can remember Beverley having in some time, especially this season. He shot 4-of-6 overall and 2-of-3 from 3-point range, giving him 10 points, four rebounds and five assists for the night in 21 minutes.
Dennis Schroder: B/B+
Schroder was a little more aggressive on Friday than he has been this season. He took 12 shots, making five of them, while going an outstanding 3-of-6 from downtown, allowing him to finish with 15 points, to go along with three assists and two steals.
Lonnie Walker IV: F
This was a rare bad game for Walker this season. He played just 20 minutes and made just one of seven shots, finishing with three points.
Troy Brown Jr.: D+
In 14 minutes, Brown did not take a single shot, and he finished with two rebounds, one assist, one steal and one block.
Thomas Bryant: A+
With Davis out for the second half, Bryant needed to step up, and that’s exactly what he did. He went 9-of-11 to score 21 points in 24 minutes while grabbing six rebounds and notching two steals.
Bryant did a great job running the floor, and he got back-to-back dunks in transition midway through the fourth quarter to bolster the Lakers’ game-defining run.
Russell Westbrook: B+
Westbrook, as he has been lately, was inefficient, shooting just 5-of-13 and committing four turnovers, but his positives clearly outweighed his negatives on Friday.
He did a great job of pushing the pace and making the game a track meet in spurts, which allowed L.A. to take control in the second half. Even when the team had built a sizeable lead midway through the fourth quarter, Westbrook resisted the temptation to walk the ball upcourt and milk the shot clock (something the Lakers have been guilty of a lot) and instead kept creating transition opportunities.
Westbrook finished with a triple-double: 15 points, 11 rebounds and 12 assists. Unlike last season, even when he’s shooting poorly, he is still a positive element for the team, which is one quality that great players have.
Austin Reaves: A
Reaves has had mostly quiet or bad games in December, but tonight he scored 16 points on 5-of-9 from the field and 2-of-5 from beyond the arc.
Early in the game, while shooting free throws, he even got some “MVP” chants from the home crowd at Crypto.com Arena.
The undrafted guard has become an indispensable part of head coach Darvin Ham’s rotation, not to mention an inspiring story.
Max Christie: A
Christie, a second-round draft pick in June, came in for 16 minutes and did very well. His effort on the boards is palpable, as he got three rebounds, two on the offensive boards, while shooting 2-of-3 from downtown to finish with six points while adding a blocked shot.
Damian Jones, Kendrick Nunn: Incomplete
Both Jones and Nunn played one minute in garbage time and neither scored a single point.
