EL SEGUNDO, Calif. — There were so many stories of redemption and micro-wins for the Los Angeles Lakers inside their largest victory yet this season.
For Darvin Ham, the Lakers’ 133-129 win Friday over the Milwaukee Bucks represented a journey back to his NBA home for so many years — a successful trip to the state of Wisconsin, where he cut his teeth as an NBA assistant before becoming a head coach six months ago for the Lakers.
For LeBron James, there was a whiff of relief — finally — in a season filled with so many questions about the uneven direction of the Lakers franchise.
For Anthony Davis, there was the continuation of a mind-boggling run that paralleled any of the Lakers’ past great big men. This time, he scored 44 points in 40 minutes against the NBA’s top-ranked defense.
And for Russell Westbrook, there was a near flawless night and a defining play that involved a dive for a loose ball in the fourth quarter that helped push the Lakers to victory.
All in all, it was an almost perfect night for the Lakers — topped off by a signature win.
“We’ve been through a lot 21 games into season and just kept digging away, digging away,” Ham said.
It started with Davis. He continued to nudge aside names in record books with his eighth consecutive game of at least 25 points and 10 rebounds. This is a stunning run, even for a team with so many decorated post players in its past. He is only the third Lakers player since 1973-74 to post such a streak.
And he did it against a Bucks frontcourt with Giannis Antetokounmpo, a past Defensive Player of the Year award winner, and Brook Lopez, who leads the NBA in blocked shots.
Davis had some pre-game motivation from another star in another sport. Despite being from Chicago, he is an unabashed Green Bay Packers fan. There was no doubt he’d chat with Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers, who made the two-hour drive to Milwaukee and sat courtside for the game. He told Davis beforehand he wanted to see 30 points from the Lakers big man.
Afterward, there was mock horror that Davis dismantled Milwaukee.
“I only said 30 [points], not 40,” Rodgers said after the game, according to Davis.
James has had a front seat to the rebirth of a player who hasn’t quite been able to shed an injury-prone label. In fact, Davis hobbled through most of the season’s first few weeks with a sore lower back. You could say he was the one inflicting pain on Milwaukee.
James told Spectrum SportsNet that Davis simply did “the same thing I’ve been seeing from him the last three-and-a-half weeks. One of the best players in the league, if not the best, on both sides of the court.”
James went above and beyond as well, just missing a triple-double with 28 points, 11 assists and eight rebounds. He can also rest easily for at least another day after the Lakers improved to 4-12 against teams with a winning record, a stat that undeniably nagged him.
“It’s hard to just hard to say what me, A.D. and Russ can do because we just haven’t played that many games together," said James. "It was the most complementary and the best game for all three of us together. We all felt like we were in a good rhythm…making impactful plays.”
James also passed Magic Johnson for sixth among the NBA all-time assist leaders and now has 10,144 to his name. He will surely pass Mark Jackson (10,334 assists) and Steve Nash (10,335) in a couple months if he stays healthy.
“It’s very humbling to be linked with any of the greats,” James said. “Magic has been everything to this franchise from the moment he was drafted.”
The Lakers (9-12) had a ridiculous efficiency ratio Friday with 32 assists and only four turnovers, numbers that prove they can play with the best teams in the league despite a less-than-enthralling win-loss record.
Westbrook helped out the cause with 15 points, 11 assists and, perhaps most importantly, no turnovers. He also dove for a loose ball in the final minutes, beating Bucks forward Khris Middleton to it near midcourt. The play turned into a dunk for Davis at the other end.
“Loose ball on the floor, that’s part of the game I take pride in,” Westbrook said.
Said James: “It was just a huge play.”
On a huge night — for a team that needed something big to happen.
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