Anthony Davis, Los Angeles Lakers
Anthony Davis continued his exceptional run of form for the Los Angeles Lakers on December 2, dropping 44 points, grabbing 10 rebounds, dishing out four assists, and blocking three shots during the Lakers’ 133-129 victory over the Milwaukee Bucks.
Speaking to the media following the game, Davis noted how a pre-game conversation with superstar quarterback Aaron Rodgers helped motivate him to put in such a commanding performance.
.@AntDavis23 (44 PTS, 10 REB, 4 AST, 3 BLK) spoke post-game about the #Lakers team effort and setting the tone for the road trip.
“You guys know how I feel about the Pack and him. Seeing him before the game, he was like ‘hey AD man, I need 30 tonight.’ I just saw him and he said ‘I only said 30, not 40.’ So, it’s always good for him to come out here and watch the Lakers play, watch me play. He’s a fan, just how I’m a fan of his,” Davis said.
Davis has been among the most dominant performers in the NBA this season and has quickly established himself as the Lakers’ primary weapon on offense, averaging 27.2 points, 12.6 rebounds, 2.7 assists, 1.4 steals, and 2.4 blocks per game while shooting 57.7% from the field.
LeBron Hints at Potential Role Change
Given Davis’ stellar start to the season, LeBron James has hinted at possibly accepting a lesser role within the Lakers’ offensive gameplan in an attempt to help Davis sustain his current dominance throughout the entire season.
When speaking to the media on November 30, LeBron noted how he was willing and able to play a secondary role behind Davis.
“I don’t have to rely on super duper athleticism to be effective.” – LeBron James shares his thought on his game evolving throughout the years and Russell Westbrook’s infectious energy.
“We won a championship together. I think this is what, year four for us? I think, Maybe? I don’t need to have a talk with AD about if I come back you need to defer. No. AD be AD, and we’ll figure it out around him. I’ll figure it out, I’m ok with that, and I can do that. But, we’re gonna keep the ball in AD’s hands, and when he’s rebounding like he did tonight, he’s blocking shots, super engaged. It’s our job as a lot of the ball handlers, mine, Dias, Austin, Russ, to get him the ball, and we did that tonight,” LeBron said.
LeBron, 37, is having a fantastic start to the season himself, providing the Lakers with 25.9 points, 8.6 rebounds, and 6.6 assists per game on 33.3% shooting from deep and 53.5% shooting from two-point range. However, given his advancing years, now might be the perfect time for LeBron to begin deferring to Davis in an attempt to keep himself fresh for the postseason.
Darvin Ham Issues Challenge to Lakers
Speaking to the media following Los Angeles’ December 2 victory over the Bucks, head coach Darvin Ham challenged his team to maintain the intensity level they showed throughout the remainder of the season.
“It was awesome to see everybody coming together and competing at that level against that team.” Darvin Ham with a few takeaways from tonight’s #LakeShow win.
“Just everybody being engaged. And again, this can’t just be a one-game thing. It’s easy to get up the Bucks. It’s easy to get up for the Celtics. It’s easy to get up for Golden State. You know this is something we have to do every time we step on the floor. And again, it’s not about who we’re playing, it’s how do we want to represent ourselves as the Los Angeles Lakers,” Ham said.
The Lakers are slowly climbing up the Western Conference rankings and are starting to look like a team capable of making it into the postseason. However, they will need to continue their current performance levels if they wish to secure a playoff spot or even a place in the NBA’s play-in tournament. Still, things are starting to trend in the right direction.