Anthony Davis did not appreciate Devin Booker's flagrant-2 foul on Dennis Schröder, which got Booker tossed in the final minute of the Los Angeles Lakers' 109-95 Game 3 win over the Phoenix Suns on Thursday.
With under 40 seconds left in the fourth quarter and Los Angeles leading by 10 points, Booker — who had been chirping with Schröder throughout the final few minutes of action — shoved the Lakers point guard to the ground on a drive through the lane.
Davis gestured for Booker to head to the locker room, where he was promptly sent after the officials reviewed the foul. AD started jawing with Jae Crowder before being restrained by his teammates.
It was a frustrating night for Booker. The two-time All-Star was clearly bothered by the Lakers' physicality, culminating in his dangerous push on Schröder. Booker also picked up a technical foul earlier in the ball game. He finished with 19 points on 6-of-19 shooting.
In his walk-off interview with TNT's Chris Haynes, a heated Davis didn't hide his displeasure with what he called a “dirty” play.
“Can't happen. Can't do that,” said Davis. “I mean, they've been chirping, it's playoff basketball. But you don't push a guy out the air like that, two hands. It's a dirty play, Dennis could've really gotten hurt right there. We keep it in-between the lines. I know Monty (Williams), he's not that type of coach … my coach for three years. But that just can't happen. Hard fouls, things like that, playoff basketball, we accept those. But just to blatantly push a guy with two hands out the air, it's a scary play. Good thing he's OK, but plays like that are unacceptable.”
In his post-game Zoom a few minutes later, a calmer Davis — perhaps due to his special guest — re-iterated his disapproval of Booker's actions.
“It was a physical game, all game. Guys chirping. Me, Jae, ‘Bron, Dennis, Book, (Deandre Ayton) had some words. That’s playoff basketball. Guys gonna chirp, guys gonna talk. But we can’t allow plays like that to happen. … Whether it was out of frustration or not, it was a scary play. Luckily, Dennis was alright. But sometimes it can end badly for a player. We don’t want to let the chirping lead to something like that.”
Schröder looked shaken up for a second but quickly fired up the increasingly raucous Staples Center crowd by doing a few push-ups before getting up for his free throws.
In a way, it was the perfect metaphor for the Lakers' physical and mental wearing down of the inexperienced and undersized Phoenix group.
“We’re competing, doing everything to get in people’s heads,” Schröder said. “But that’s not a basketball play … In the regular season, that's probably a suspension as well.”
James agreed.
“I thought the play wasn’t a basketball play,” LeBron said. “Someone gets airborne, shoving him out the air can be dangerous.”
Crowder, after spending the night as a punching bag for the Lakers fans and LeBron, was also tossed. Booker dodged questions about the play after the game.
For Davis, in particular, it was an eventful Game 3 — which marked he and LeBron's first postseason game in downtown Los Angeles.
AD was one of a handful of Lakers who could be seen limping during the bout. Schröder was walking gingerly at one point, while Kentavious Caldwell-Pope was forced to exit the game with a left quad injury. (He'll receive an MRI on Friday, per ESPN's Dave McMenamin.)
Just before halftime, AD fell awkwardly on Booker and could be seen favoring his leg during the second half. In his post-game presser, he said his leg “felt fine” but acknowledged that he benefited from an “adrenaline” assist.
“It's the playoffs. It's rare that I'm going to come out of a game,” Davis said. “We got two days in between, so can get it looked at and checked out. Landed awkwardly. Tried not to fall on Book and I guess it hyperextended a little bit. But, just keeping it warm, keeping it loose, just wanted to keep going. But it felt fine throughout the rest of the game, really didn't have any problems with it. But like I said: it was all off adrenaline. So we'll see how it feels tomorrow, get some treatment. Get some treatment Saturday and be ready to go Sunday.”
Despite the ailment, AD responded with 18 aggressive points in the third quarter, as the Lakers' two superstars ignited their best stretch of the game.
Lakers head coach Frank Vogel praised the efforts of his two best players.
“AD, even though he was dinged up with his knee and was a little bit hobbled, really committed to what worked for us in Game 2, which was running the floor, being the first big down…That opened a lot of driving lanes for ‘Bron, who mentally made the decision to get downhill and live at the paint and live at the rim…Those two guys really reversed the course of the whole game.”
Davis finished with 34 points on 11-of-22 shooting and made 12-of-14 from the free-throw line (always a good sign). He added 11 rebounds (six offensive) and spear-headed the type of overpowering interior production from the Lakers that was expected going into this series. Los Angeles out-rebounded Phoenix, 51-35, and scored 20 more points in the paint (58-38).
The second straight game of stellar performances from Davis and James (21 points, nine assists, six rebounds, one dismantling of Jae Crowder's pride) allowed Los Angeles to overcome 20 turnovers and 21 missed three-pointers.
Now, the Lakers and Suns will get two days off to ice their joints and cool their heads before an early afternoon tip-off on Sunday (12:30 p.m. PT). Things are officially spicy.