These playoffs have been a treat for all basketball fans to watch. The matches are nail-bitingly close, often coming down to clutch shots being made by either team to win the game. With 45 seconds left on the clock, Lebron James had one such opportunity to draw the game against the Nuggets during game 1 of the 2022-23 Western Conference finals.
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The shot by LeBron would have sealed a 20-point comeback for the Lakers. The comeback was heavily reliant on a monstrous 40-point outing for Anthony Davis, which would still be ‘insufficient’ as the Lakers would fall 132-126 to the Nuggets.
But Davis is making news for more than just his performance on the floor. The ‘Brow’ was seen bantering with a fan as he exited the floor after the match. The video of the incident has fans reacting, implying that the big man was upset at Lebron for missing the game tying shot.
Twitter reacts to a ‘pissed-off’ Anthony Davis ‘confronting a fan’
Anthony Davis is known to be a ‘gentle’ giant. Though something a Denver fan said, clearly seemed to get at the Laker big-man. Davis was seen ‘confronting’ a fan while exiting the floor through the tunnel. The interaction was caught on video, where the big man seemed visibly ‘pissed off’. Many fans flocked to Twitter to react to the video.
Anthony Davis appeared to get into it with a Nuggets fan near the Lakers tunnel after Game 1 😳 pic.twitter.com/DCyQmWUQeK
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) May 17, 2023
One fan seemed annoyed with LeBron James chucking 3s and blamed him for AD’s aggression in his tweet, saying, “LeBron James blew the comeback”.
Anthony Davis pissed cause Lebron blew the comeback
— 🏀 (@KUjayhawks_fan) May 17, 2023
Another fan assumed Denver fans were making fun of AD’s injury history, calling his frame something ‘ Made out of glass’
They must have told them he was made of glass
— Jayson 🤑 (@HuiAdventures) May 17, 2023
Another fan in his tweet believed Anthony Davis was now more fired up for Game 2 thanks to the verbal altercation
Pissed off ANuggetsame 2 😤😤😤
— Kuzamer ~ #MambaForever🐍 (@bakusatsuou_24) May 17, 2023
A concerned Nuggets fan was grateful that the situation didn’t escalate and Davis remained calm on his side
Definitely not getting into it 🤣 Fan probably said something stupid, and if so, AD showed great restraint (and I’m a Nuggets fan).
— Brian (@BrianE386) May 17, 2023
Late changes cost the Lakers Game 1, as Denver has an ‘efficient’ start to the series
The Denver Nuggets deserved the win in Game 1. Leading the Lakers 72-54 at the half, the Nuggets had a remarkably ‘efficient’ first half. That being said, Darvin Hams’ adjustments before the game were also a contributing factor to Denver’s first-half run. Deciding to go small, starting Dennis Schroder over Jared Vanderbilt was one such miscalculation by the Lakers Head coach.
Playing small ball worked well on the Warriors, but served to backfire against the Nuggets. With Denver moving the ball slowly and using their size to their advantage in the paint and on the wings.
With the series being far from over, it would be advisable for the Lakers to put more bodies on Jokic. Packing the paint with more bodies would deter Nikola Jokic or Aaron Gordan from slashing the paint. Not only that but adding larger bodies would allow for more offensive and defensive rebounds. These rebounds serve a critical role in second-chance opportunities, something the Lakers had not enough off. With the Nuggets outrebounding the Lakers 47-30, the purple and gold have to be better on the glass undoubtedly.
