Motivated LeBron James, Anthony Davis, Lakers Is Scary Sight for Rest of the NBA | News, Scores, Highlights, Stats, and Rumors

There are few things scarier than great players motivated by past failures to achieve greatness.

LeBron James and Anthony Davis are two such players ahead of the start of the 2023-24 NBA season.

The faces of the Los Angeles Lakers franchise have not forgotten the devastating four-game loss to the Denver Nuggets in the Western Conference Finals this past June and are hungry to not only get back there, but to hoist the Larry O’Brien trophy for the first time since the abbreviated 2020 season, as head coach Darvin Ham told the Los Angeles Times’ Dan Woike.

“Winning has a way of connecting you at the hip. But so does losing. And the way we lost and how tough those four games were, I just think it lit a fire in everyone and we got a glimpse of how good we can be in a short period.”

He continued, ” “And then you give us an offseason where we go and add additional pieces that are going to be key pieces for us and in our mix and in our program. And then the leadership from Bron and [Anthony Davis], their wisdom that they’ve been able to impart on the younger guys, the new guys, the guys that are returning and how that has been like Crazy Glue.”

Take into consideration the wealth of talent the team either re-signed (Austin Reaves, Rui Hachimura, D’Angelo Russell, and Jarred Vanderbilt) or brought on-board (Christian Wood) and you have a stronger team determined to make up for last year’s bitter disappointment.

James has done and said all of the right things.

At a time where much has been made of the Lakers’ season opener against the same Denver team that bounced them from the postseason, James has said all of the right things.

He denounced the idea that the team was too focused on the Nuggets, saying, “I don’t get motivated against [who] the opponents [are] pretty much anymore” and added, “I don’t need it. I don’t want to say I don’t get motivated to play, because I do get motivated to go against the competition, I love competing against the best. But I don’t need an individual or a team to motivate me. I’m self-motivated. I’m enough.”

James also talked up Davis as one of the franchise’s greatest big men. “We’re co-captains, and he’s just as much a leader of this team as I am. He’s everything that this franchise could ever want and more; he’s one of the greatest bigs to play for this franchise for sure.”

This is the behavior of a team captain that recognizes what championship drive and positive reinforcement can bring to a team beyond the play on the court.

Reaves showed up and showed out last season, helping fuel the Lakers’ postseason run. Hachimura was a significant part of the team coming off the bench. Davis and James played at a championship level.

With determination fueled by watching the Nuggets celebrate a trip to the NBA Finals, the motivated team is a scary match-up for anyone.