Coming out of Kentucky, Anthony Marshon Davis was expected to blossom into one of the NBA’s most elite big men. After a relatively quiet rookie season, AD became one of the few to live up to expectations, demonstrating his unique and superior talent early in his career.
Fast forward to the end of the 2020 season, and he was easily among basketball’s best frontcourt players, with 7 All-Star appearances, 4 All-NBA selections, and an NBA Championship to his name.
Unfortunately, Davis followed up that stretch with, arguably, his worst performance since 2014.
Besides struggling to stay healthy, he seemed passive and non-aggressive at times, clearly not his usual self.
And while it still has some fans worried, FOX Sports’ Shannon Sharpe says he’s due for an upswing.
“I expect AD in year 3 with the Lakers to have a season closer to what he had in year one. Rondo has played with AD before in New Orleans. He played with KG so he’s used to feeding the post.”
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With a full offseason of rest and training, Davis could be ready to return to the form we saw a year ago when his play was the catalyst behind L.A.’s title run.
According to some, the addition of Rajon Rondo is what will really make the difference.
Rondo is more of a sure thing for the Lakers because both James and Davis trust him. Beyond the title won together in 2020, Rondo and Davis were teammates on the 2017-18 New Orleans Pelicans. In the first-round sweep of the Portland Trail Blazers, Rondo averaged 13.3 assists per game and then delivered 21 assists in a Game 3 win against the Golden State Warriors in the next round.
“AD is special, but he needs a guard like Rondo to be great,” the former executive said. “But paring LeBron and AD, all bets are off.”
Whatever the case, the Lakers are primed to be a major contender for the title. With Russell Westbrook, LeBron James, and a slew of other talented pieces, L.A. has what it takes to win it all.
But, at the end of the day, they will only go as far as AD takes them.
