Getty Lakers big man Anthony Davis
An NBA champion who spoke to Brandon “Scoop B” Robinson of Bally Sports on September 14th had a lot to say about Los Angeles Lakers star Anthony Davis.
Kendrick Perkins, who won the 2008 championship with the Boston Celtics, told Robinson that he believed Davis would have a terrific bounce-back season in 2022-23.
“I actually got high hopes that Anthony Davis might win MVP,” Perkins said. “I think Anthony Davis is gonna come out on a mission. There’s reports about Darvin Ham talkin’ about how they gonna go through Anthony Davis and I think this is Anthony Davis’ moment to start getting back in that top-tier, top-five player conversation again.”
In his first year with the club, Davis helped the Lakers win the 2020 championship over the Miami Heat. He signed a five-year, $190 million contract with Los Angeles in December 2020 and the All-Star and LeBron James were predicted to compete for more titles.
However, Davis has appeared in only 76 games over the last two seasons. The Chicago native played in just 40 games in 2021-22. He missed 17 consecutive games from late December until late January after suffering an MCL sprain in his left knee against the Minnesota Timberwolves. Then in mid-February, Davis sustained a right mid-foot sprain versus the Utah Jazz, causing him to miss 18 straight games.
The Lakers missed the playoffs last season despite having James, Davis and Russell Westbrook. Perkins actually urged Los Angeles to trade Davis to the Brooklyn Nets for Kyrie Irving in May, but after the Nets announced that two-time Finals MVP Kevin Durant wouldn’t be traded following a meeting with owner Joe Tsai, head coach Steve Nash and general manager Sean Marks in August, Irving was removed from the trade block.
Davis ‘Working Out with Increased Diligence’
According to a July 29th report from Marc Stein of Substack, Davis has been “working out with increased diligence” after making a controversial statement in June. Fans had bashed Davis after he said on his June 10th appearance on the “Nuke Squad” YouTube vlog that he hadn’t picked up a basketball since April.
“Some potential good news for the aforementioned Lakers and the soon-to-be-extension-eligible James: Anthony Davis’ surprising disclosure in mid-June that he hadn’t shot a basketball since early April might have been a blessing in disguise,” Stein reported. “Davis, by all accounts, has been working out with increased diligence ever since his comments generated a wave of strong criticism.”
In 138 regular-season games with the Lakers, Davis is averaging 24.1 points, 9.1 rebounds, 3.1 assists and 2.1 blocks. Although James is still the “best player” on the purple and gold, new Lakers head coach Darvin Ham wants to run his offense through Davis.
Lakers Will Run Offense Through Davis
According to an August 9th report from Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports, Ham told James that he planned on running the Lakers’ offense through Davis next season. James, who turns 38 in December, had no problem with Ham’s decision.
Lakers vice president of basketball operations and general manager Rob Pelinka told Doris Burke and Mark Jones of ESPN on July 8th that Davis has “quietly put together one of the biggest offseasons of his career.” Davis will make $37.9 million next season.
“He’s bought in, and I think he’s quietly put together, you know, one of the biggest offseasons of his career,” Pelinka said on July 8th during a Summer League game in Las Vegas. “You can just tell. He’s got a very serious tone about him. And, you know, last year didn’t unfold the way any of us wanted and I think everyone’s gonna come back with a chip on our shoulder and AD’s gonna lead us with that.
“I think he’s working hard. I know he’s working really hard on his body. Just excited to see what he’s gonna do. And I think you could tell, Doris and Mark, with the roster, you know, with the free-agent moves we made this offseason, we wanted to get younger. We wanted to get more athletic and faster and defensive-minded. Those are the things that coach Ham really wanted.”