LeBron James and Anthony Davis began their Los Angeles Lakers partnership with a bang and Golden State Warriors guard D’Angelo Russell was impressed by it.
The new era for the Los Angeles Lakers got off to an excellent start. The Lakers played their first preseason game with their newest superstar duo, LeBron James and Anthony Davis, against the Golden State Warriors.
The Warriors were opening up their new homecourt, the Chase Center. Things couldn’t have gone much worse for the home team, as the Lakers came out strong and carried that momentum throughout the entire game.
James and Davis only played the first half, but it was a dominant half of basketball. The new duo wasted little time in creating highlight plays together.
It took James less than two minutes to record his first assist with his new superstar running mate.
LeBron ➡️ AD
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) October 6, 2019
First of many buckets from that duo. pic.twitter.com/cyfoBF82xY
Davis was absolutely unstoppable in his 18 minutes on the court. The Warriors were undersized, but potential Defensive Player of the Year Draymond Green matched up with Green and he didn’t stand a chance.
Davis scored 22 points with 10 rebounds, two assists and one steal. James stuffed the stat sheet as well, scoring 15 points with eight assists, three rebounds and one steal.
Those two are going to be a handful for opponents throughout the season. If they can do that in their first game playing together, in only one half, imagine what they will be able to do when they build their chemistry and play 35 minutes in a game.
Some people will say that James and Davis are capable of putting up video game numbers together. Warriors guard D’Angelo Russell sees them as a fantasy team.
D'Angelo Russell on watching the LeBron/AD Lakers: "It's different. It's different seeing all those big guys on the floor at the same time. LeBron playing point alongside those dudes. It's cool. It looks like a fantasy team or something."
— Nick Friedell (@NickFriedell) October 6, 2019
Fantasy team indeed. When you have two top-five players in the league on your team, you are capable of incredible things. When they mesh as well as James and Davis, and are surrounded by players that complement them well, the sky is the limit.
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The starting lineup used tonight by the Lakers is one they should seriously consider using in the regular season. Avery Bradley and Danny Green are solid defenders that can spread the court offensively. Davis does not want to play center, so JaVale McGee is a good frontcourt partner for him.
For the spurts that Davis is going to play center for? That is when the Lakers could really do some damage. He is a great player when positioned at power forward, but when he plays the 5, it is truly an unfair advantage.
If Russell finds it cool as an opponent and someone that has to compete against them, how do you think Lakers fans feel?
It has been a long few years for Lakers Nation, as they have missed the playoffs for six straight seasons, the longest drought in franchise history. However, that streak looks like it could be snapped this season as long as the team remains healthy.
With James and Davis, the Lakers could have the best player on the court for all 48 minutes of the game. There are a lot of great duos in the NBA this season, but James and Davis are arguably the best one given how their skill sets fit together so well.