How LeBron James Has Guided Anthony Davis Throughout The Playoffs
Throughout the NBA playoffs, Anthony Davis has leaned on LeBron James.
James has tried to teach him one simple message.
"Just staying even-keeled," James said Sunday. "That's what it's all about. The playoffs and the postseason, the more you advance into the postseason, the emotions and the adversity, it's going to be a roller coaster at times. No matter if you're up, no matter if you're down, being able to keep your composure and your mindset on the main thing is very important."
Davis took James' words to heart, making the biggest shot of his career on the biggest stage he's ever been on.
In his first-ever Western Conference Finals series, Davis made a buzzer-beating three-pointer to turn a one-point deficit into a 105-103 win for the Lakers over the Denver Nuggets in Game 2 on Sunday.
James, who holds the record for the most postseason buzzer-beaters in NBA history with five, was incredibly happy for his teammate and close friend.
"I tried to chase him down just like every last one of the teammates and staff that we had out there," James said. "Special moment for a special player. Happy to be a part of it."
James knew exactly how Davis was feeling.
After all, Davis' big shot reminded him of one of his own.
In 2009, James made a three-pointer at the buzzer for the Cleveland Cavaliers to give them a 96-95 win over the Orlando Magic in Game 5 of their Eastern Conference Finals series.
"To be completely honest, man, it was probably one of the greatest moments of my career up until that point," James said. "Just knowing the situation, we were about to go down 0-2 and we had home-court advantage. We knew how powerful that Orlando team was, playing against actually my teammate now in Dwight [Howard]. So for me to be able to hit that shot was a huge moment for me. I was still a young kid at the time, so big-time."
James added that he had only one regret for Davis.
He wanted him to experience that shot in front of 19,000 hysterical fans.
"The one thing I wish AD had tonight with the shot that he made, I wish we were playing at Staples [Center]," James said. "We miss our fans so much and I can only imagine. I probably would've blew the roof off Staples Center. AD hitting that shot tonight in Staples, with our crowd. I would have loved for him to have that moment."
But for Davis, the moment was still incredibly impactful.
"It's for sure the biggest shot of my career," Davis said.
It was exactly the type of opportunity Davis had hoped for when he left the New Orleans Pelicans for the Lakers.
"I just wanted to be able to compete for a championship, and I know that moments like this comes with it," Davis said. "Especially being in L.A., the biggest market in basketball."
James has guided Davis through a lot this postseason.
He was there for Davis after his poor shooting performance in Game 1 of the Lakers' first-round series against the Portland Trail Blazers.
"He let me have my moment and kind of get on myself," Davis said Aug. 20. "And then he talked to me and said I was fine. He said it’s one game."
Davis went on to score 31 points on 61.9 percent shooting through three quarters in Game 2, nearly doubling his field goal efficiency (33.3) from Game 1.
And then he helped Davis turn things once again when after they clinched their second-round playoff series against the Houston Rockets on a night when Davis scored 13 points on 4-for-9 shooting.
"You guys saw that in Game 5 of the Rockets where he comes to me at the scorer's table and talks to me when I was struggling," Davis said.
Davis responded by excelling in the Western Conference Finals, averaging 34 points on 52.4 percent shooting from the field and 41.6 percent from beyond the three-point line.
It's all been a dream come true for Davis.
And he knows James' guidance has made it a reality.
"Just going out there and just playing basketball, he makes it a lot easier for me," Davis said. "Just being able to want this type of pressure, this type of spotlight, and go out and play in big games and make big-time plays and big-time shots for my team. It was definitely what I wanted."
