After starting out slow, it seems like the Los Angeles Lakers have found their groove. The team is currently on a three-game winning streak after defeating the San Antonio Spurs on Sunday, and Anthony Davis is a big reason why the team is thriving right now.
The University of Kentucky product is averaging an absurd 35.0 points and 17.3 rebounds per game on a blistering 61.7 percent shooting from the field over his last three games.
Davis has stepped up as superstar LeBron James deals with adductor strain, and the eight-time All-Star spoke about stepping up in James’ absence.
“Obviously when he’s out, or if I’m out, we take it upon ourselves to kind of, as much as we can, fill that void,” Davis told ESPN when asked about his ascension in James’ absence.
The one-time champ has oftentimes taken a back seat to James since joining the Lakers from the New Orleans Pelicans back in 2019.
Despite saying he was ready to lead the Lakers as the No. 1 option on offense this season, Davis is still taking less shots per game than James.
The four-time champion has apparently been giving Davis some positive feedback recently.
“We haven’t talked about it, but he did say that I’m playing like my old self, so I’m trying to get back into that rhythm,” Davis said about James’ feedback to him.
As James continues to get up there in age and deal with injuries, Davis has a chance to really cement himself as the leader of the team. After dealing with multiple injuries over the past few seasons, the 29-year-old has played in 14 of the Lakers’ 15 contests so far this season.
While he won’t be able to accomplish his goal of playing in all 82 regular season games, it seems like he’ll end up playing in most of them at this rate.
Anthony Davis says his goal is to play all 82 games this season.
— Lakers Daily (@LakersDailyCom) September 26, 2022
It’s clear that things work well with Davis leading the charge on offense for the Lakers, so they’d be wise to continue making him the focal point moving forward. Los Angeles is 3-3 in games where Davis is the team’s leading scorer.
The four-time All-NBA selection is averaging 25.6 points, 12.0 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 1.9 blocks per game this season.
He’ll look to put in another massive performance on Tuesday when the Lakers begin a three-game road trip against the Phoenix Suns.
