The Los Angeles Lakers and Dallas Mavericks faced off on Tuesday night in their highly-anticipated first meeting since the Luka Doncic-Anthony Davis trade. Davis was out due to a left adductor strain, but Doncic was available and put on quite the show.
Tallying 19 points, 15 rebounds, 12 assists, three steals and two blocks, Doncic did some of everything in the win over his former team. While it would have been exciting to see Doncic and Davis face off, the former No. 1 pick out of Kentucky was still honored by the Lakers for his incredible run in Los Angeles.
Speaking after the game with Brad Turner of The LA Times, Davis admitted his emotions were irregular due to him being sidelined.
“If I was playing, it would have been a little bit more emotional for me,” Davis admitted. “Obviously, it was emotional for the time I had here. But the video was fire! The love from the crowd was fire! The ovation was fire!”
Although appreciative of the tribute video the Lakers supplied, Davis acknowledged he struggled to process it.
“I don’t know,” Davis said. “I haven’t processed it. I might have to watch it again. I’m just in the midst of a game. I’m trying to win a basketball game. So, I couldn’t really get a chance to like, really, dissect the video and feel what I wanted to feel. But that’s the first time I had that, and I think that it was really dope for the Lakers to do, obviously, and I’m honored and appreciative, for them even considering to do that for me.”
Now that the emotional homecoming is finished, the Lakers look to move forward with their new superstar. While Davis won a championship with LA in 2020, the Lakers clearly believe they have the opportunity to win many more with Doncic.