NBA Top Five Performances, March 24: Anthony Davis’ Double-Double Lifted Los Angeles Lakers Past Oklahoma City Thunder
TOP PLAYERS OF THE DAY:
At one point this season, the Los Angeles Lakers were written off as a team that wouldn’t even make the playoffs.
Now, some say they can make noise as a contender in the West with a fully healthy roster. The latest addition to their case is the monster performance by Anthony Davis, who had 37 points and 15 rebounds in the Lakers’ win over the Oklahoma City Thunder. They won their third consecutive game amidst reports of LeBron James possibly returning from injury in the final stretch of the regular season.
Los Angeles is tied with the Minnesota Timberwolves for seventh place in the Western Conference.
“We just have to approach these last eight games like we’ve been doing since the deadline,” Lakers coach Darvin Ham said. “Each game is its own entity. We just have to approach each game and pour all of ourselves into each particular game. We’ll continue to carry on as such. Now instead of constantly facing a deficit, we get to create a surplus.”
OTHERS:
- Pascal Siakam had 32 points, five rebounds, and nine assists against the Detroit Pistons to continue the Toronto Raptors’ pursuit of clinching a play-in spot.
- Luke Kennard’s career-high 10 3-pointers led to a 30-point performance in the Memphis Grizzlies’ rout of the Houston Rockets. Kennard shot 91 percent from downtown, breaking the franchise record for most 3-pointers in a single game.
- Jordan Poole’s 19-point fourth quarter contributed to a 33-point performance in the Golden State Warriors' win against the Philadelphia 76ers.
- Domantas Sabonis flirted with a triple-double in the Sacramento Kings’ win over the Phoenix Suns. Sabonis ended the game with 27 points, nine rebounds, and nine assists to end the Kings’ two-game losing streak.
Jayden Armant is a contributor to Inside the Heat. He is a student at Howard University. He can be reached at jayden.armant@bison.howard.edu or follow him on Twitter @jaydenarmant.
