Davis gets it done on big stage

Anthony Davis caught the ball deep on the left side with the Lakers losing and time about to run out.

The shot Davis made Sunday to win Game 2 of theWestern Conference finals against the Nuggets was from nearly the same spot and situation as one he attempted in his team’s last game before the NBA seasonwas suspended.

He missed that one, sending the Lakers to a 104-102 loss to the Nets on March 10, and was bummed about it for a few days.

Not LeBron James, though. That moment just reinforced what he already believed about the All-Star forward the Lakers had acquired to play alongside him.

“You’re not going to make them all, but the belief to just take it and live with the results is what it’s all about,” James said.

Davis has been making plenty so far in the deepest postseason run of his career. He has been the dominant player in this series, where the Lakers have a 2-0 lead with Game 3 scheduled for Tuesday night.

Davis followed his 37 points in Game 1 with 31 more Sunday, including the Lakers’ last 10.

The 2012 No. 1 pick, Davis had long been one of the NBA’s best players by the time he joined the Lakers in July 2019. But it’s one thing to be performing quietly in New Orleans, where just winning a postseason round made it a good season.

It’s another thing to be playing with James, where not winning a title makes it feel like a lost season.

“I just wanted to be able to compete for a title, and I know that moments like this comes with it. Especially being in L.A.,” Davis said after the 105-103 win Sunday.

Davis had never made a buzzerbeating shot in the postseason and had only one in his entire career. Nowhe’s on a list of Lakers that have done it in the playoffs, a group that includes Hall of Famers such as Kobe Bryant, Jerry West and Elgin Baylor, along with noted clutch postseason performers Derek Fisher and RobertHorry.