Los Angeles Lakers duo LeBron James and Anthony Davis made their NBA preseason bows in Wednesday's win over the Phoenix Suns.
James and Davis sat out the opening two preseason fixtures against city rivals the Los Angeles Clippers after leading the Lakers to their first NBA championship in 10 years in October.
But James and Davis geared up for opening night – December 22 against the Clippers – by taking to the court in the 112-107 victory in Phoenix midweek.
James posted 11 points, two rebounds and two assists in 15 minutes, while star team-mate Davis had 10 points and four rebounds in 18 minutes of action as Kyle Kuzma led the Lakers with 23 points.
"We anticipated a little bit rusty first stretch and I thought that played out," Lakers head coach Frank Vogel said of James post-game.
"Once he got his legs underneath him, I think he settled in and looked great.
"I think it was anticipated and as I anticipated and it’s going to be a matter of getting his legs back under him again."
Lakers superstar James earned his fourth Finals MVP in 2019-20, becoming the first player in NBA, MLB, NFL and NHL history to win the Finals MVP with three different teams, having also received the honour with the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Miami Heat, per Stats Perform.
Last season, James appeared in 67 games and averaged 25.3 points, a career-best and league-leading 10.2 assists and 7.8 rebounds per games, while he averaged 27.6 points, 10.8 rebounds and 8.8 assists in the playoffs.
Davis and James became the first pair of team-mates in NBA history to each have 500-plus points and 200-plus rebounds in the same postseason as the Lakers reigned supreme.
The first overall pick in 2012 by the New Orleans Pelicans, Davis averaged 26.1 points in the Lakers' title-winning campaign – the most by any team-mate of James' when appearing in at least 70 per cent of games.
Davis became the fifth player in league history to shoot 50-40-90 in the NBA Finals (.571 field goal percentage, .421 three-point percentage and .938 free-throw percentage), joining Kevin Durant, Chauncey Billups, Penny Hardaway and Magic Johnson.
Reflecting on his return against the Suns, Davis – who is fresh off signing a five-year contracted – said: "I felt great, honestly.
"Coming in I thought I'd be a little winded. You can try to get in shape all you want, but there's nothing like getting into basketball shape, in game shape.
"I was kind of hesitant about that, but I felt fine. I could have played more. Probably going to play more Friday, but I felt physically fine."