Lakers Criticized For Over Reliance On Anthony Davis

The Los Angeles Lakers almost regained their full potential, but things didn’t go too well in the last couple of weeks. They lost the game to the Philadelphia 76ers and fans are pretty concerned. It was a bad loss for the Lakers, but Anthony Davis had a brilliant night. He delivered 31 points, 12 rebounds, two blocks, and 2 steals. The big man went 69.2% from the field and yes, the Lakers big man had a wonderful night.

Davis had great season and he could easily win the MVP award. He averages 27.5 points, 12.3 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 1.3 steals, and 2.3 blocks per game with the team. He goes 61.5% from the two-point line, too.

Stephen A. Smith reminded fans and fellow analysts of one major issue. The Lakers seem to ignore one major issue. Are they too-reliant on AD? Should Rob Pelinka consider surrounding his talented superstar with more talent?

“It’s clearly Anthony Davis. Simply because the Lakers don’t have a defense without him, without him, they giving up about 123 points a game, they can’t stop a cold,” Smith said. “That’s the bottom line. And that’s what it really really comes down to. And he’s their interior offense as well. LeBron can get to the hole, Russell Westbrook can get to the hole. But, you talking about somebody that can play with their back to the basket, and get to the hole, get in the paint, make things happen, block shots, rebound – that would be Anthony Davis.”

Keith Smith from Heavy says that AD plays his best game at the moment. The Lakers big man suffered injuries early in the season, but he looks really good at the moment. Hopefully, AD will continue playing at high level. Staying healthy is also a priority.

“Davis, this is as good as he’s ever played. This is better than Bubble Davis,” Smith said on the Postin’ Up With Keith Smith & Adam Taylor podcast. “This is probably better than Pelicans Davis (too). You call him a disruptor. He’s an absolute disruptor on defense because he can very big. He can basically single-handedly destroy whatever it is you’re trying to do because he can switch out to the perimeter, hold his own out there. He’s great at cleaning up messes inside for his teammates. Sometimes he’s really good at just, you know, handling those straight-line drives, and you know, taking shots away at the rim.

“So yeah, he’s playing absolutely phenomenal. The question is, is he gonna hold up? That’s all it really comes down to with Anthony Davis, is you know, can he continue to carry this heavy of a load, playing this well, and hold up for, you know, fifty plus more games, because if he can, the Lakers are probably gonna be in the play-in, maybe the playoff mix. If he can’t, then you know, it’s kind of you look at it like, well, that was a fun couple of months, and now we’re right back where we were once again with him.”