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At the age of 27, Anthony Davis is finally a winner. Ever since he came to the league, he has always been one of the most versatile big men out there. He made the All-Star game in just his second year and has been a fixture in the festivities ever since.
But you can never gain the utmost respect from the basketball community unless you win a championship ring. Team success, particularly in the playoffs, was hard to come by in New Orleans. People scrutinize how he made his way out of the Pelicans camp, but there’s no question that he gave everything for that franchise. He led the league in blocks multiple times, all while carrying the lion’s share in the Pels’ offense.
In his first year with the Los Angeles Lakers, there were a lot of nights that he was the best player on the floor. LeBron James compiled a career-high in assists, an obvious indication that he is content and confident in Davis’ multi-faceted skill set on offense.
Now that he is approaching his second year with the Lakers, an MVP-caliber season for Davis is waiting around the corner.
Value of championship DNA
Everything becomes different when you completed the tough, grind-it-out journey of chasing the Larry O’Brien trophy. That’s not to mention that Davis and the Lakers did it in an enclosed bubble environment, away from their families and outside of their usual comforts.
Davis now knows what it feels to be a winner at this level. More importantly, he now discovered how to get there. He’ll be a more confident player in every facet of his game, and that’s a scary sight to see for the rest of the league.
There were moments in the playoffs that Davis became passive on offense, and it’s no coincidence that the Lakers mostly lost those games. With a more aggressive yet calculated approach to his offense, Davis will be a different beast this season.
Green light to shoot from deep
Davis has never been a terrible shooter. The reason why he was a feared post scorer was that he could step back a bit and hit that mid-range jumper with consistency. But with the good shooting form that he has, there’s no doubt that he could expand his range to the three-point line.
Davis is starting to realize how valuable of a weapon he could be if he lets it fly from beyond the arc. He attempted 218 shots from deep last season, his highest single-season total throughout his career. In the playoffs, he produced a decent 38% clip, punishing the Miami Heat’s 2-3 zone and forcing them to adjust their defense.
Davis emphasized his desire to play the power forward position, so he has no other choice but to continue hoisting up those three-pointers. He has to space out the floor while playing with Dwight Howard and JaVale McGee at the frontcourt last season. This year, he will be logging in minutes alongside Montrezl Harrell, who gets his points strictly from inside the paint.
Spacing is important for this team, and I foresee Davis eclipsing 300 attempts from deep this season.
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