JACKSONVILLE – During an entertaining Sept. 28 Media Day press conference that featured some good-natured back-and-forth with local reporters, Anthony Davis predicted that his attempts from beyond the three-point arc in 2015-16 might fluctuate from night to night. “I may shoot 15 in a game,” Davis said, presumably exaggerating a bit. “Or I might shoot zero.”
After the two-time All-Star’s extended range was a major topic of discussion this summer – talk that only increased after a video was posted of the 22-year-old repeatedly sinking corner threes – he did not attempt any treys in New Orleans’ preseason opener Oct. 3. That changed Friday, however, with Davis launching three times from long distance vs. Atlanta, making two of them. Davis, who went 1-for-12 on threes during the 2014-15 regular season, scored the first points for either team of a 103-93 Hawks victory, by nailing a trifecta from the left corner. He later connected from the top of the arc.
“He worked on it all summer, so when he steps out, if a (defender) has his hand down, he’s going to let it go,” Pelicans guard Tyreke Evans said. “Coach (Alvin Gentry) wants him to shoot it, any opportunity he gets. He can make them, so it’s going to be hard for people to stop him.”
In an offensive system where Pelicans players talk often about how additional spacing is intended to create more open shots and driving lanes, the impact of Davis’ extended range may go beyond a simple 2-for-3 on the stat sheet. Forward Luke Babbitt, who shot a scorching 51.3 percent on three-pointers last season – while sometimes being defended by players who are reluctant to stray from the paint – noted that even the threat of the shot affects opponents. When a player’s shot must be respected from deep, it forces defenders to move a step or two further from the lane, making it harder for them to play help defense.
“That’s big, because when Anthony is playing (power forward), if he can stretch his man even three or four more feet from the basket, that’s going to be big for Tyreke, Jrue (Holiday), and those guys can have even more space,” Babbitt said of New Orleans’ multiple penetrating guards. “Anthony’s defender will have to come out further, so AD will also have even more room to go to work on him. If he keeps making that three, it’s going to make him even tougher to guard.”
Atlanta actually has one of the NBA’s more mobile frontcourts, led by rangy center Al Horford and power forward Paul Millsap, but Davis still had three clean looks at the rim in 25:36 of court time. For some opponents, who were already facing a major dilemma in matching up with the first-team All-NBA performer, a consistent three-point shot from Davis will be even more problematic for bigs with average footspeed.
“The guys who are guarding him are not going to be used to stepping out (to contest a three-pointer),” Babbitt said of Davis. “There are very few players at his level that do that. It’s just another dimension to his game that makes him difficult to cover.”
Preseason postgame Twitter Q&A
Friday’s game wasn’t televised, so we fielded questions from fans on Twitter who most likely didn’t get a chance to watch Pelicans-Hawks:
From @gobear3: what do you believe AD’s average number of 3s made per game will be? I'm going with 1.5.
@Jim_Eichenhofer: Hmm. Very tough one. I say about 1.0. But it’s probably way too early to even make an informed prediction.
From @JasonQuigs: are any preseason games going to be on TV?
@Jim_Eichenhofer: The next game is on NBA TV (Monday at Bulls, 7 p.m. Central). Two others may be on NBA League Pass. The Oct. 19 game at Houston is being televised by the Rockets, while the Oct. 23 home game vs. Miami is scheduled to be broadcast by the Heat.
From @FearTheBrown: We seem to have taken a lot of jumpers no? Was that just offensive freedom? I was hoping we got looks at the rim.
@Jim_Eichenhofer: They seem fine with the number of threes they are taking (27 on Friday). They want more transition chances that will lead to dunks and layups. The tempo definitely slowed in the second half against the Hawks.
From @phelpsalot: always love to know how the guys trying to make the team fared ... any injuries (new)?
@Jim_Eichenhofer: Nothing new health-wise happened in Friday’s game. ATL’s camp hopefuls played better than NOLA’s in the second half, which caused the turnaround on the scoreboard.
From @SportsGuy_83: do you think the pace is hurting the team as they haven't built up necessary stamina yet? Shooting very poorly so far.
@Jim_Eichenhofer: It's possible that's a factor. But they've also missed bunch of good looks early in games when legs should be fine. Probably just flukish.