LeBron James finally made his much-awaited return for the Los Angeles Lakers on Friday against the San Antonio Spurs and it resulted in a 105-94 win for LA. This was LeBron's first time back coming off a five-game injury spell, and it is clear that the Lakers are more than happy to get their talisman back.
During his time off the court, however, it was Anthony Davis who carried much of the load for the Lakers. AD went on a mind-blowing run during LeBron's absence, which has now prompted some high praise from King James. In his mind, LeBron has no doubt that Davis was simply the most dominant player in the NBA over the past week or so:
“AD was the best player in the league over the last 4-5 games,” James said, via Dave McMenamin of ESPN. “Just his numbers and productivity on both sides of the floor. It's not just offensively but defensively he's been super engaged, and tonight once again he was amazing.”
In case you weren't paying attention, Anthony Davis put up some crazy numbers with LeBron on the sidelines. The Lakers superstar averaged 33.2 points on 59.6 percent from the floor, 17.4 rebounds, 2.2 assists, 2.2 steals, and 2.6 blocks in 33.6 minutes per contest.
Some might argue that LeBron James' absence benefitted Davis from an individual production standpoint, but you also have to note that AD was able to keep it going during Friday's win over the Spurs. The eight-time All-Star dropped 25 points on 10-of-13 shooting to go along with 15 rebounds, four assists, a steal, and three blocks.
The Lakers are back in action on Saturday on the second night of a back-to-back set, and it sounds like LeBron will be suiting up again. It will be interesting to see how Davis comes out in that one given the circumstances.
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