Los Angeles Lakers star Anthony Davis continued his surge as he proves that past struggles to advance in the playoffs are just that: in the past.
In the first game of the NBA Finals against the Miami Heat, Davis scored 34 points and entered lofty company in the record book.
That point total is tied for the third-most in Lakers history for players making their Finals debut, according to ESPN. He’s behind only Shaquille O’Neal, who scored 43 in 2000, and George Mikan, who put up 42 in 1949.
Elgin Baylor also scored 34 in his 1959 Finals debut.
“Obviously the nerves was there … but when the ball’s tipped up, we just go out there and play basketball,” Davis said to ESPN’s Rachel Nichols during the on-court postgame interview on the ABC broadcast.
He seemed to get over those nerves quickly. Davis scored 11 points in the first quarter to help the Lakers overcome what had been an early double-digit Heat lead.
He had 30 points through three quarters as the Lakers ran their lead as high as 32 before winning 116-98.
Davis made all 10 free throws he attempted and hit a pair of 3s. He also had nine rebounds and five assists, and played strong defensive while picking up three blocks.
It’s a continuation of his domination this postseason. Davis averaged more than 31 points per game in the Western Conference Finals and almost 29 points per game in total while shooting 57.1% from the field.
He didn’t need to make a clutch shot or buzzer beater in Game 1 against Miami like he did against the Denver Nuggets in Game 2 of the conference finals.
Once the Lakers got the lead in the first half, Miami posed no challenge.
Los Angeles accelerated over the next two quarters and finished the game having made 15 of 38 3-pointers, a 39.5% clip.
Davis was one of five Lakers players to finish the game with double-digit points.
LeBron James had a near-triple-double with 25 points, 13 rebounds and nine assists.
