The Los Angeles Lakers made a huge statement to the rest of the basketball world on Friday.
Facing Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks, a team that won the NBA championship less than 18 months ago, the Lakers brought their A game and delivered a 133-129 victory to start their six-game road trip.
Los Angeles led by as many as 14 in the second quarter, only to see the Bucks make things competitive in the third quarter. But LeBron James, Anthony Davis and company kept the pressure on throughout with numerous big shots and plays.
Milwaukee came in ranked second in points in the paint allowed and first in defensive rating. However, the Lakers shot 53.6 percent from the field and 42.3 percent from 3-point range, to go along with 70 points in the paint.
The Bucks had been allowing opponents to just 44.9 points in the paint per game.
LeBron James: A
James was somewhat quiet early on, but he turned it up down the stretch. He hit back-to-back 3-pointers with less than four minutes left in the fourth quarter to help make the win possible.
He finished with 28 points, eight rebounds and 11 assists. However, he appeared to suffer a tweaked ankle in the fourth period, which will be something to keep an eye on moving forward.
Anthony Davis: A+
Davis was unstoppable in the first half, scoring 23 points on 11-of-14 shooting. He ended up with 44 points, which is a season-high, on 18-of-27 shooting, 10 rebounds, four assists and three blocked shots.
He outplayed Antetokounmpo, who also did very well with 40 points, seven boards and five assists.
As well as Davis has played this season, this was quite possible his best overall performance of the season so far.
Troy Brown Jr.: B
Brown made a contribution by hitting 4-of-5 shots and 1-of-2 from 3-point range to finish with nine points, four rebounds and three steals.
Patrick Beverley: B
Beverley went 3-of-5 from the field and finished with seven points, four rebounds and two assists.
Lonnie Walker IV: B-
Walker was very quiet early, as he went scoreless in the first half, but he came on strong in the third quarter, scoring 14 points in that period, which was his final tally.
He was just 4-of-10 overall, but he went 2-of-5 from downtown while also adding a blocked shot.
Wenyen Gabriel: B+
Gabriel hustled well (as usual), snatching six rebounds in 14 minutes and also scoring five points while adding an assist and steal.
Russell Westbrook: A-
Westbrook came in and started dropping dimes right away. He had eight assists in the first half, giving him 11 on the night.
Offensively, he was efficient, hitting 6-of-11 from the field to score 15 points, although he went just 3-of-7 from the free throw line.
He had perhaps the play of the game when he came up with a key steal with just over a minute left in the fourth quarter that led to a fast-break dunk by Davis.
Austin Reaves: B
This was a quiet game offensively for Reaves, but he still helped the Lakers’ cause. He scored just seven points in 32 minutes, but he drew two charging fouls in the first half and played with his usual energy and grit.
Thomas Bryant, Kendrick Nunn: Incomplete
Bryant and Nunn played four and two minutes, respectively. Bryant scored four points on a basket and two free throws, while Nunn went scoreless.
