NBA WESTERN CONFERENCE FINALS: LAKERS VS. NUGGETS

September 22, 2020

Anthony Davis

Los Angeles Lakers

Game 3: Postgame

Denver Nuggets 114, Los Angeles Lakers 106

Q. Anthony, what did you notice the most in this game about the way you guys struggled up until that fourth quarter? What was the top-of-mind thing for you?

ANTHONY DAVIS: First three quarters, they were more physical than us. They played more desperation. They played harder. They were getting 50/50 basketballs. They were the aggressors and it showed in the first three. And at the end of fourth quarter, we started playing our style of basketball, cut it to three, and had a chance to take the lead.

But when you're down 20 and you're trying to battle back, everything has to go right. Kind of have to have a perfect storm. We had opportunities, and then they made plays at the end. We just didn't come out very aggressive and physical.

Q. The rebounding battle was a big one tonight. You've had at least ten rebounds in almost every game and tonight they didn't seem to come your way. Did you notice anything specifically on the glass for you?

ANTHONY DAVIS: No. Have to do a better job on the glass personally. I can't have two rebounds for an entire game. So, I might be better in that aspect, but unacceptable. I mean, there's not really much I can say. I just have to do better.

Q. You've won six games in a row and your last game was that euphoric ending. Do you think any of that have contributed to the level you came out with tonight, just that things were rolling so well for you that you lost a little bit of edge or sharpness coming into tonight?

ANTHONY DAVIS: No. They are a good team. They are going to keep battling. They are going to keep fighting. That's kind of been their MO the entire playoffs. They are a team that's not going to go away. We don't expect them to go away. We have to be better though. We turned the ball over at crucial times. We missed a lot of shots, especially from three. We didn't shoot the ball well from three tonight, as we've been doing in our other games.

But we just have to be better. But we didn't, you know, come out slow because of the game before.

Q. You guys obviously still lead the series, but really going back to halftime of Game 2, Denver has kind of been the aggressors and has set the style. What do you guys need to do to really kind of reclaim control of this series, do you think?

ANTHONY DAVIS: We're still up 2-1. We have control of the series. We just got to come out in Game 4 and play our style of basketball. Can't turn the ball over. Can't put them on the line. Our defense was great in the fourth quarter. We got to be able to do that for all four [quarter], all 48 minutes. We can't not play in the first three and then expect to win a game in the fourth.

If we come out and play our style of basketball, you know, pushing the pace and being scrappy and being the aggressors, especially on defense, we'll be fine.

Q. When you guys were making run after being down 20, why do you think that you guys were so connected in that defense when you guys had struggled a little bit defensively in the earlier parts of the game, and how close did you really feel to completing that run?

ANTHONY DAVIS: I mean, when you're down, especially 20, you've got to be on a string. You can't have mistakes. Obviously we switched our defensive scheme up, our look up, and kind of took them out of some of the things they wanted and we were able to get stops and score in transition, which is what we've been all season long and all playoffs long, being able to score in transition. We were able to do that and get some easy buckets.

We were right there, we're down three, 98-101, Kenny comes in, wide-open look. We all thought it was good. And it's a tie game -- if he makes that, it's a tie game and anything happens.

But we're on a roll. We had that missed three and then me, I messed up on a fastbreak opportunity where it should have been a guaranteed two points. We were right there and kept fighting and we know how we have to play going into Game 4 from start to finish. We can't give this team nothing easy. It's a team that you have to put them away. You can't just expect them to go away.

Q. Apologize if this was already asked. Do you feel like over these last five or six quarters that you guys have become too much of a jump-shooting team? How can you fix that? Are there things you guys can do? I know those are the shots that are there and that's what Denver wants you to do, but are there ways to be more aggressive, and do you feel you guys need to be more aggressive and attack?

ANTHONY DAVIS: They do a good job of pulling in. We have guys that can shoot the basketball. We've made shots the entire playoffs. Guys have made shots for us. This is maybe the first game in a while that we shot poorly from three.

Guys have had open looks, Kenny had open looks, so a shot that we normally make, we just missed tonight. But they are going to continue to give it to us and we've got to be able to knock down shots. We feel like we are a great jump-shooting team, but we also get to the basket well. But we have to also realize that they close out very hard. They don't really stop short. They are contesting our jumpshots -- pump fakes and drive it to the basket, re-driving and finding an open teammate is also a solution. We are going to continue to play our style of basketball. If the shot's open, we want you to shoot it with no hesitation, no thinking. If you don't want to shoot it, drive the basketball and create room for yourself or another player.