Anthony Davis had some explaining to do, finally addressing the elephant in the room after video showed the All-Star forward sulking on the Lakers’ bench while teammates celebrated LeBron James’ scoring record Tuesday night. Davis seemed to be in a funk all game, displaying the frustrated body language of a player at the end of his rope, tugging onto his last shred of sanity for dear life.
Anticipating that it might come up in his post-game presser, Davis, following a bounce-back performance Thursday against Milwaukee (23 points, 16 rebounds), did all he could to downplay the apparent snub, adamantly denying any jealousy or resentment toward James.
“You know me and Bron’s relationship. It was nothing. I mean we lose to the Oklahoma City Thunder in a game where we need it. I was pissed off that we were losing,” said Davis, defending his muted reaction to James’ milestone, passing Kareem Abdul-Jabbar for the most points in NBA history. “It’s that simple. It had nothing to do with LeBron. He knows that. Everybody else on the outside looking in, that’s their opinion.”
Davis and James are known to be close, sharing an agent (Rich Paul) while also investing in many of the same business ventures including Lobos 1707, a tequila brand that debuted in 2020. Still, the optics of Davis remaining seated as teammates rushed to congratulate James warranted an explanation, with reporters on the Lakers’ beat dutifully holding him accountable for an odd incident that demanded clarity.
Losers of three straight, the Lakers had a busy trade deadline, acquiring D’Angelo Russell, Mo Bamba, Jarred Vanderbilt, Malik Beasley and Davon Reed while jettisoning Russell Westbrook, Juan Toscano-Anderson, Damian Jones and Thomas Bryant, all in the span of 24 hours. Despite their current standing—13th out of 15 teams in the Western Conference—the Lakers’ season is far from done with plenty of time to get back in the play-in conversation.
Related
LISTEN NOW on the Audacy App
Sign Up and Follow Audacy Sports
Facebook | Twitter | Instagram