The Los Angeles Lakers put up a defense masterclass tonight. The visitors took on the short-handed New York Knicks and dominated them with physical play. Notably, the towering center, Anthony Davis, played an important role near the paint, restricting the Knicks’ lone warrior, Jalen Brunson.

While AD dropped only 12 points with a poor 4-12 record, he made his mark on the other end of the court. Speaking of his defense in the post-game interview, he had a lot of talk about. Specifically, when a reporter asked about the two back-to-back blocks in a single play in the second half, AD didn’t sigh away from taking the credit. He said, “Putting my imprint on the game… That’s what I do… It’s a natural instinct that I have.”

Even though Anthony Davis dropped only 12 points, he recorded 18 rebounds and 4 blocks, shutting off the Knicks’ offense tap. Importantly, 10 of those rebounds came in the first quarter.

Moreover, he also had a crucial message for his teammates. AD said, “You got to take it personal, that’s how you get better.” He said this when one of the reporters asked him about the defensive domination set on Knicks star guard Jalen Brunson. The All-Star played the game without the two Knicks frontcourt pillars, Julius Randle and OG Anunoby. Subsequently, he carried the pressure to make the extra buckets.

The Lakers cashed in on the situation and pulled in double defense for Brunson, forcing him to take tough shots. Apart from that, LeBron James made several crowd-rousing-1v1 against Brunson throughout the game. Despite that, the Knicks star ended the game with 36 points along with 10 assists.

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Amid the narratives around firing Darvin Ham and trade deadline, the Lakers pull off two amazing wins. Let’s take a closer look.

Lakers back on top after the Knicks win

Before the famous Celtics win, the LA side was down and out with two blow-out losses. Following the losses, fans and pundits blamed HC Darvin Ham for pulling out the starting line-up early in the fourth quarter. Along with that, rumors of Ham’s exit loomed over the NBA town.

However, the rumors were immediately overshadowed by the Celtics’ win. Similarly, trade rumors ahead of the deadline were also making waves. One of the rumors was even about LeBron James moving to the Knicks.

Nevertheless, it all came to a brief pause after they pulled two difficult wins on the road. Currently, the Lakers are standing at the 9th seed with 26-25 record, well and truly in the hunt for the playoffs spot.

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What do you make of Anthony Davis’ statement on his special play to produce two back-to-back blocks? Let us know in the comments below.