Los Angeles Lakers: 3 stars in NBA play-in win over Warriors

Second star for the Los Angeles Lakers: Anthony Davis

Anthony Davis is a modern superstar big, one of the best defenders in the league. On offense, he has the versatility to stretch defenses vertically as a lob threat and horizontally as an outside shooter. Yet through one half of basketball for Davis, his versatility just meant he could miss in a variety of ways: at one point he was just 3-of-15 from the field.

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Then after halftime Davis was a different force entirely. Whether it was his injury slowing him down in the first half or simply the brilliant defense of Draymond Green, Davis was stonewalled through 24 minutes. But he came alive in the second half, closing the game 7-of-9 as he jammed home lobs and even drained a 3-pointer.

The coaching adjustment down the stretch was taking out the ineffective Andre Drummond and putting Anthony Davis at the 5. This is always the break-in-case-of-emergencies option for head coach Frank Vogel, and he went to it often down the stretch. Drummond and backup center Montrezl Harrell combined for just 27 minutes as Davis played 42 and all of the center minutes late.

Defensively he was a monster all game long, holding Draymond Green to 0-5 shooting and just two points on the night. In total, he dropped 25 points, 12 rebounds, two steals and a block. He moved without the ball to find seams in the defense and convert easy looks, and he hit all four of his free throws. This was not a dominant Davis game, but it was a good one, and the Lakers needed it.