The Los Angeles Lakers stars yelled at each other over a missed defensive assignment. Signs of discord between LeBron James and Anthony Davis? Hardly. Instead, it showed how the two do not shy away from holding each other accountable.
The Lakers cruised to a 124-114 win over the Miami Heat in Game 2 of the NBA Finals on Friday for a commanding 2-0 series lead. And yet James and Davis were upset the team could have played even better while the Heat struggled without an injured Goran Dragic (foot) and Bam Adebayo (neck).
"We were both frustrated that we had multiple coverages that were blown tonight. It was just all piling up and we just kind of had that moment, put it behind us and kept playing," Davis said. "It's not always going to be pretty. It always seems like everything is good with me and him, and we do have our times where we do yell at each other and we do argue, but we know it's coming from a good place, so we get over it quickly and move on to the next play. We are just two guys that really want to win and have a love for the game."
James (33 points, nine assists and nine rebounds) and Davis (32 points, 14 rebounds) became the first Lakers teammates to score at least 30 points each in a Finals game since Kobe Bryant (36) and Shaquille O’Neal (35) dominated in a Game 3 win over the New Jersey Nets in 2002.
Davis described Bryant and O’Neal as "the best duo we’ve seen" after the pair won three NBA championships in four Finals appearances. James echoed that, saying they became "the most dominant duo that I have personally seen in my life." But just as James and Davis showed in a brief moment in Game 2, Bryant and O’Neal often expressed their disagreements openly.
"They were arguing because they both wanted to be so dominant, they both wanted to be great and they both wanted to win," Davis said. "That's why they jelled together outside of everything else that you might have heard that they were going through. But you know, those two guys were selfless. They both had a competitive spirit with themselves to will their teams to win. I think me and Bron are the same way."
Well, not exactly. Earlier this week, Davis said he does not envy James at all apart from his three NBA titles. After the Lakers acquired Davis last summer from the New Orleans Pelicans, James pleaded with the Lakers to make Davis the team’s primary offensive focal point. But both players have held each other accountable for mistakes, and have motivated each other to bring the best versions out of themselves.
Comments