This was bound to happen at some point.
Los Angeles Lakers center Anthony Davis's charmed run over his last ten games came to an abrupt end tonight, when he had to leave late in the first quarter with flu-like symptoms.
Per Mike Trudell of Lakers.com, L.A. head coach Darvin Ham revealed postgame that Davis had tried to play through a 101-degree fever, before ultimately departing the game having suited up for just 8:07. Trudell adds that the team will reveal more tomorrow about AD's availability for L.A.'s contest Wednesday against the Toronto Raptors.
At the start of the night at least, Davis connected with a cutting LeBron James for a solid slam:
Without Davis available to man the paint for the majority of the night, the Lakers surrendered 70 points inside, having entered the game having limited opposing clubs to just 51.8 points in the paint, Trudell adds.
LeBron James operated a bit more freely inside, gobbling up 17 rebounds on the night. Here he is turning a defensive rebound into a fast break layup:
James was more primed to play more of an inside-outside game. Watch him scramble here to recover a loose ball for a hammer slam:
Los Angeles was able to keep things relatively close even with Davis out for much of the first half -- until the Cavaliers closed out the second quarter on a 15-4 tear, to take a halftime edge of 57-49:
The Lakers, thanks mostly to the play of James, Dennis Schröder, and Lonnie Walker IV, were able to slightly shave that Cleveland lead to just one possession, 85-83, through the third quarter.
Through the first few minutes the fourth frame, timely offense from a guard-heavy Lakers lineup comprising Russell Westbrook, Schröder, Austin Reaves, James and Thomas Bryant helped keep L.A. in the hunt. But with the game knotted at 92-92 with 8:32 remaining in regulation, All-Star Cavaliers guard Donovan Mitchell effectively went bonkers, keying a 24-10 closing run (Mitchell personally outscored L.A. with 15 points of his own in that stretch) and finalizing the victory.
The guy is just an unreal shotmaker. He finished with a game-most 43 points on 17-of-27 shooting:
One of the few bright spots of tonight's loss was the play of reserve center Bryant, compelled into a bigger role with Davis sidelined. In 28:10, Bryant scored 19 points on 8-of-12 shooting from the field and 2-of-2 shooting from the charity stripe. He also pulled down nine rebounds and dished out a dime.
For the Lakers, James finished with a team-high 21 points on 8-of-17 shooting, along with the aforementioned 17 rebounds, plus four assists, a steal and a block. Three other Lakers (Bryant, Schröder and Westbrook) scored in double figures.
L.A. falls to a 10-13 record on the season, and will try to get back into the winners' column as their road trip continues tomorrow up north.
Lakers News: Lakers' Luck Runs Out, Team Falls 116-102 To Cavs - Sports Illustrated
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