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After a long and unconventional NBA season, the LA Lakers claimed the 2020 championship. It was a moment of vindication for LeBron James and Anthony Davis; after enduring various slings and arrows from their critics, the two men combined to lift the Larry O’Brien Trophy. Amid the celebrations, however, something else apparently happened.

Moments after winning the 2020 NBA title, LeBron reportedly shared an inspiring message with Anthony Davis. In King James’ eyes, this victory is only the beginning of something special.

LeBron James and Anthony Davis teamed up to win an NBA title

It’s not exactly a groundbreaking idea to suggest that a team with two legitimate superstars could win an NBA championship. In Hollywood, though, LeBron James and Anthony Davis proved to be the perfect pairing.

James, of course, joined the Lakers as a free agent during the summer of 2018; Davis came to town via a trade a year later. The two men immediately struck up a relationship, bonding both on and off the court.

Purely in a basketball sense, James and Davis clicked. While both men are capable of winning a game singlehandedly, playing together made things even easier. LeBron had a legitimate scoring threat to pass to, and Davis was able to go about his business without the pressure of being the main man.

That reality paid dividends. During the 2020 NBA regular season, the Lakers looked like the class of the Western Conference; after a brief hiccup in the bubble, they returned to form and marched to the championship. While the club admittedly had an easy road to the title, they can’t be faulted for other teams’ failings. As the cliche says, you can only play the teams in front of you.

LeBron James believes that he and Anthony Davis are just getting started

Once the final whistle blew, and the LA Lakers were crowned NBA champions, the celebrations began. Amid the champagne and confetti, though, LeBron James apparently had a message for Anthony Davis.

According to Chris Hynes of Yahoo Sports, LeBron found the big man in the Lakers locker room. According to Hynes’ sources, King James simply told his teammate, “We’ve got more work to do.”

As Harrison Faigen of Silver Screen and Roll pointed out, that message and its subsequent publication was probably intentional. “Haynes is as plugged in with James, Davis and the Klutch Sports camp as they come,” meaning the quote could be as much for Lakers fans as anyone in the locker room.

At this point, the LA Lakers’ future is pretty bright

Since LeBron James and Anthony Davis had that exchange, the big man has opted out of his contract. He’s expected to remain with the Lakers, though, leaving the club in great shape.

While, once again, it’s not groundbreaking to suggest that having two superstars on one team is a recipe for success, the Lakers do seem to have the perfect one-two punch with LeBron and AD. Giving James a younger, but already established, star creates an insurance plan; if the veteran starts to slow down—which is inevitable, even though it’s yet to happen— or deal with nagging injuries, there’s already someone in place who can lighten the load without creating a controversy.

If the reports are to be believed and LeBron James actually told Anthony Davis, “we’ve got more work to do,” then that’s quite the message about their future together. The big man, and everyone who follows the LA Lakers, should be excited about what the future holds.

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Senior Writer, Programmer

Joe Kozlowski

Joe Kozlowski began his career as a sports journalist in 2013 and joined Sportscasting in 2019. He covers the NBA and soccer for Sportscasting, with specialties in legacy NBA players such as Michael Jordan and Premier League club Arsenal. Off the clock, he’s a Kansas City Chiefs fan and a hockey goalie.

Growing up loving Shaquille O’Neal and reading everything he could about the great big men throughout NBA history — likely because he was still tall enough, at least relative to his peers, to play center — he’s continued to love learning about and exploring the historical and story-based sides of the basketball archives.

As for Arsenal, Joe spent a year living in London and latched onto the local support of the club. He’s barely missed a match since, loving Arsene Wenger, enduring the Banter Era, and following along through rebuilds. The Premier League interest developed into a passionate following of the Champions League, Europe’s big five league, and international soccer as a whole when played at the highest level.

Regardless of the sport, Joe is captivated by the stories of athletes beyond the box scores and how they push the envelope — both in terms of what we think a human is capable of accomplishing and how they find new competitive tactics to win.