Most NBA fans and experts agree that Anthony Davis is one of the best defensive players in the league. And yet, somehow, he still doesn’t have any accolades to show for it. In a recent chat with ESPN’s Shams Charania, Davis spoke on his lack of defensive awards and explained how the criteria for choosing the winner is so inconsistent.
“[Damian Lillard] said this before, that the goalpost moves every time he’s up for something,” said Davis in a chat with Shams Charania. “When I first got into the league, Defensive Player of The Year was awarded to a big that blocked shots, who led the league in blocked shots. I’ve done that three times early on in my career here and it didn’t come to me.”
Davis didn’t call anyone out specifically, but he seemingly threw some shade at 4x DPOY winner Rudy Gobert for getting the credit he feels he rightfully deserves.
“We have guys who are winning this award that all they do is block shots but they’re not good the in pick-and-roll, not good in one-on-one defense. If you look at me, I guard one through five, last year I was the best defender in the pick and roll, I’m coming off pin-downs, it doesn’t matter. Whatever you want me to do defensively, I can do. And I know it has a lot to do with the team defense as well which confuses me because it’s an individual award.”
At 6’10” and 250+ pounds, Davis has always been a naturally gifted defender and his impact on the court is undeniable. For his career, the 9x All-Star is averaging 25.6 points, 11.8 rebounds, and 2.2 blocks per game on 52.3% shooting.
As a 9x All-Star, NBA champion, and 5x All-NBA player, Davis is among the most accomplished players in the league but he’s yet to win a Defensive Player of the Year award. The closest he ever came was in the 2019-20 season when he ranked 2nd behind Giannis Antetokounmpo with averages of 26.1 points, 9.3 rebounds, and 2.3 blocks per game.
There’s no question that Davis is worthy of more DPOY nominations and several prominent figures have already thrown his name into consideration before. But the Lakers haven’t been consistently good enough on defense for Davis to get the nod and that hasn’t changed this season either.
This year, with 2.2 blocks and 11.8 rebounds per game, Davis is putting up worthy numbers but the Lakers rank 22nd on defense with 115.4 points allowed. For him to qualify for the award, the Lakers will have to step it up defensively and rise several spots in the West standings. For now, all Davis can do is play his best game and hope that Rob Pelinka brings in the assets needed to fix the team’s defense.
The next game for the Lakers is tomorrow, January 25th, against the Golden State Warriors at the Chase Center (8:30 PM EST). After that, the Lakers play the Charlotte Hornets at Spectrum Center at 7:00 PM EST before a showdown against the Philadelphia 76ers at Wells Fargo Center (7:30 PM EST).
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