LOS ANGELES – A Los Angeles Lakers star and a trusted role player stood side-by-side, soaking in both a significant win and the critical plays they made to ensure that happened.
But as LeBron James and Dennis Schroder reflected on the Lakers’ 108-102 overtime victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Tuesday, Anthony Davis interrupted their post-game interview.
The Lakers often preach having a “next-play” mentality. But after spending an exhausting game trying to live up to that mantra, Davis remained bothered with his own play. So, Davis apologized to Schroder for ruining his potential game-winning 3 in regulation after fouling Timberwolves guard Mike Conley on the next play. That resulted in Conley sinking three foul shots to force overtime.
“I’m always the first one to own up to my mistakes,” Davis said. “The biggest thing, though, is it messed up Dennis’ game winner. He got on me about that. It always sucks when you lose. So, this doesn’t hurt as badly.”
Perhaps not. The No. 7 Los Angeles Lakers will face the second-seeded Memphis Grizzlies in a first-round matchup beginning Sunday in Memphis. Instead of facing the winner of Wednesday’s matchup between the New Orleans Pelicans and Oklahoma City Thunder with an elimination game on Friday, the Lakers have four days of rest, preparation and travel.
Anthony Davis harbored different feelings after he committed the blunder. After all, the Lakers had overcome a 15-point deficit. They had held Minnesota without a field goal for the final 6:01. And it appeared the Lakers would walk off the court in dramatic fashion.
With the game tied at 95 with 11.7 seconds left, James attacked the basket before firing a pass to Schroder on the far corner. He then drained a 3 for a 98-95 lead with 1.6 seconds left. Schroder and James stretched out their arm and felt their bicep, while the 18,977 fans screamed and cheered in unison.
“I told LeBron to get a great shot, attack the rim and get it over with,” Schroder said. “But he always makes the right reads.”
Davis didn’t exactly make the right read on the next play. With Minnesota guard Kyle Anderson inbounding the ball near midcourt, Davis stood near the top of the key to stop center Karl-Anthony Towns from cutting to the rim. Once James switched on Towns, Davis saw Anderson fire a pass to Conley in the far corner. Davis raced to close out, but he mistimed his jump.
Said Davis: “I jumped to not foul him and he kind of went with me and got a foul.”
Conley sank three free throws to force overtime. Davis then told James and Schroder, “my bad.” Davis turned to his other teammates and said, “my fault.” Lakers coach Darvin Ham hardly fretted about the incident and said, “we got five more minutes to play.”
“We had some unfortunate plays, but no one got down on each other,” Ham said. “There were no personal attacks. Everybody is passionate about, ‘How can we best close out the game?’”
Los Angeles Lakers not rattled by late miscue
Consider what happened afterwards. The Los Angeles Lakers held Minnesota without a field goal for the first three minutes, 24 seconds. On one play, Davis set up Schroder for an open layup. On another, James fed Davis for an open dunk. Overall, the Lakers outscored Minnesota, 10-4, in overtime.
The Lakers showcased their resiliency well in regulation, too. Beyond finishing with 30 points on 12-for-21 shooting, 10 rebounds and six assist, James logged 45 minutes and made constant hustle plays. Despite nursing pain in his neck and right hip, Davis remained aggressive enough to post 24 points and 15 rebounds. After hurting his left foot in the first half, Schroder still proved effective with 21 points and the key 3-pointer toward the end of regulation.
Though Lakers guards D’Angelo Russell (two points on 1-for-9 shooting) and Austin Reaves (12 points on 4-for-13 shooting) struggled with their efficiency, the Lakers compensated elsewhere. The Lakers held Minnesota forward Anthony Edwards to nine points on a 3-for-17 clip. After Towns collected his fifth foul while the Timberwolves held a 89-79 lead with 9:21 left, the Lakers went on a 7-0 run less than a minute later.
Minnesota competed despite fielding recent adversity. The Timberwolves suspended Rudy Gobert for one game after punching Anderson in a team huddle during Sunday’s regular-season finale against New Orleans. Minnesota ruled out Jaden McDaniels indefinitely after he suffered multiple fractures in his right hand after punching a wall at halftime of Sunday’s game. Yet, the Lakers have refused to back down from challenges, too.
“We’ve been very resilient and able to stick with the game,” James said.
That explains what the Los Angeles Lakers have written on their whiteboard in the locker room. They noted their record at the beginning of the season (2-10). They highlighted the odds prognosticators gave them to make the postseason following their sluggish beginning (.03%). The Lakers overcame those odds with key trade deadline moves that involved parting ways with a poor fit (Russell Westbrook) and addressing positional needs with playmaking (Russell), shooting potential (Malik Beasley), wing depth (Rui Hachimura) and interior help (Jarred Vanderbilt, Mo Bamba). With a franchise known for its star power, the Lakers have played with unassuming grittiness.
No wonder Schroder shrugged off Davis’ miscue.
“I didn’t have a lot of those. That would’ve been a good one,” Schroder said. “But at the end of the day, we won.”
Mark Medina covers the NBA for Sportsnaut. Follow him on Twitter and on Instagram.