Los Angeles Lakers forward Anthony Davis received a rude welcome from Kristaps Porzingis of the Mavs Thursday night, after making his return from a nine-week absence. With AD attempting to work himself back into playing shape, Porzingis posterized the defending big man in a reminder of just how fast the pro game is.
Something tells us that Davis would rather forget the abuse he experienced at the hands of Kristaps Porzingis (Video via NBA on Twitter):
Mavericks making plays inside & out.@dallasmavs 62@Lakers 51
Halftime on TNT pic.twitter.com/j3HnnMLMu6
— NBA (@NBA) April 23, 2021
With the Mavericks staked out to an eight-point lead late in the first half, Kristaps Porzingis worked from the top of the arc in a mismatch against point guard Dennis Schroeder. Taking the smaller defender off the dribble, the 7'3 Latvian big man launched himself into the air before the Lakers defense could rotate over, leaving Davis helpless under the basket as KP slammed home the rock over him.
While Los Angeles had been looking forward to the return of their defensive fulcrum, that hasn't prevented the Mavericks from ruthlessly attacking the rim for most of the night. In addition to his picture-perfect dunk, Kristaps Porzingis also hooked up with Luca Doncic earlier in the game for an equally ferocious one-handed jam at the rim. With the center playing in his first back-to-back games of the season–with the Dallas training staff preferring to sit him in the second contest of consecutive games–his rim-running ways have to be a positive sign for a Mavericks squad that is far better with him on the court. The Mavericks are holding down the No. 7 seed in the Western Conference. They have had a bumpy season, but so have most of the league's other teams. If they can hit the reset button in the playoffs, who knows what can happen?
Something tells us the Los Angeles Lakers and Anthony Davis would prefer he go back to resting, at least to the extent that he doesn't have to face what Kristaps Porzingis dished out.
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