Anthony Davis says he’s going to ‘continue to shoot the ball from 3,’ ‘whether it goes in or not’

Los Angeles Lakers superstar Anthony Davis isn’t going to let his slow start from beyond the arc this season deter him from shooting the 3-ball.

Davis explained that he can help stretch the floor to open things up for LeBron James, Russell Westbrook and Talen Horton-Tucker to drive to the basket.

“I’m going to continue to shoot the ball from three,” Davis said after the Lakers’ win over the Detroit Pistons on Sunday. “Whether it goes in or not, I think that opens up the floor for my teammates — LeBron, Russ, Talo — to get downhill. And it opens it up for me to get to the paint when guys run out and are closing out to the three. I’m just trying to be effective at all three levels of the floor, and it was going for me tonight.”

Davis hit both of his 3-point attempts in the win, but he has struggled from 3-point range this season as a whole.

The eight-time All-Star is shooting just 20.5 percent from beyond the arc this season, which is way off of his career average of 30.7 percent.

When healthy in the 2019-20 season, Davis shot 33.0 percent from beyond the arc and his jumper was a huge reason why the Lakers went on to win the NBA title.

“Obviously, we want him attacking the basket as much as possible. His points in the paint are really good, top-three (in the league), one of the best in his career,” Lakers head coach Frank Vogel said. “But his jump shot is going to come around, so we’re comfortable with that.”

Davis and the Lakers are 11-11 on the season and have won two of their last three games since LeBron James returned from his one-game suspension.

On the season, Davis is averaging 24.2 points, 10.1 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game.