Dwight Howard's row with Anthony Davis is already squashed, with the Los Angeles Lakers duo exuding a calm that was not present during their on-court confrontation in a loss to the Phoenix Suns.

The Lakers, aiming to regain the title they won in the NBA bubble in 2020, fell to 0-2 as they were beaten 115-105 by last season's Western Conference champions.

Their defeat was highlighted by a disagreement between Howard and Davis in the first half, which saw the latter shove his team-mate during a timeout.

However, both men were quick to insist the incident had been put behind them.

"We just had a disagreement about something that was happening on the floor," said Howard. 

"We're both very passionate about winning. We didn't want to lose this game. We got it out of the way. We're grown men. Things happen.

"But we already talked. We squashed it. There's no issues between me and him. And that's my brother. That's my team-mate."

"It's over with," Davis added. "After the situation happened, me and DH talked about it ... and we left it in the locker room at half-time."

Meanwhile, LeBron James made it clear there is no panic among the Lakers after following up their opening-night loss to the Golden State Warriors with another disappointing display.

"There's a process along with building something to become the team you want to become, and I know it firsthand," James said.

"It doesn't happen overnight, as much as you want it. It just takes time, and we'll know when that time is. Right now, we've got to continue to just push."