Arguably, one of the loudest parts of a Lakers game is the moment after Anthony Davis is standing under the basket and receives the ball from one of his teammates. He sidesteps and pivots as men’s arms are flailing by his head and body, and he bends his knees just slightly as he suspends into the air, simultaneously lifting his arms over his head as his hands stay glued to the basketball between them. His hands come right back down until they meet the rim, and the ball slides through, tapping all sides of the net. It’s then that the fans burst with a charge of energy that feels like it could blow the roof off of the arena. They do it every time this happens. And Anthony Davis always returns the favor, he yells back and flexes his arms, sometimes he’ll even pound his chest.
“…I just like to get the crowd into it and get them amped up with my type of play,” Davis explained the morning of the team’s last game of their Grammy road trip in Charlotte. “It’s usually making a big dunk and having them get into it and our team get into it, it’s always good having a big impact play where I can get the crowd into it.”
Just a few days prior, Davis received the news he was selected as an All-Star Reserve for this year’s All-Star Game. He described the selection as an honor and a privilege and is excited to be a part of the game, especially since this year is going to be a little bit different than the last time he was in attendance...
“This will be my first All Star with my boys,” Davis said of his two sons. “It will be good for them to experience All Star and have a little fun. So, I’m looking forward to spending this one with my family.”
Davis is shooting 55.1% from the field this season and averaging 12.2 rebounds, and 2.4 blocks a game. As a defensive minded big man, AD understands the All-Star Game is always heavily focused on offense but that’s not going to deter the Brow from playing his game.
“Fourth quarter, when you have the target scorer, that’s usually when the defense comes to play. I know the first three quarters is all about fun and trying to win the money for either team’s charity, my job comes down to the fourth quarter when you’re trying to reach that target scorer and win the basketball game,” Davis explained.
If you’ve ever wondered what it feels like to experience Davis on defense, well...it depends what side you’re on.
“It’s a good feeling to know,” Austin Reaves explained. “You can be a little bit more aggressive on the ball. Even if he doesn’t block the shot, he’s going to alter it. I remember we were messing around in practice, and I asked him to guard me. I got a good jump shot, about 17ft, and he blocked it—I think from the block— so I understand everybody’s pain when they go try to finish on him because it’s not easy.”
After winning the NBA’s inaugural In-season Tournament, the team entered a downswing. Davis remained steady and brought substantial performances despite facing defeat. When asked where his recent aggression had stemmed from, No. 3 answered, “The frustration of losing…I hate losing. I don’t care about my own individual play; I only care about winning. If I play badly and we win, that’s all that matters. Obviously, you think about things you can do to help the team, and I think all of us just looked at ourselves in the mirror and thought about what we could do to help each other individually. It’s not really about what I can do, but what we can do to be better as a unit.”
The Lakers’ pendulum swung up and on January 9th, they defeated Toronto by one point. The game came down to the final seconds and without Anthony Davis’ 20-fourth quarter points it’s unlikely the Lakers would’ve pulled this one out.
After the game, when asked about his 41 points, 11 rebounds, and six assists, the big man deflected the credit to his teammates. “My teammates are doing a great job of giving me the basketball in spots that I can be effective.”
“For you personally, to close it out…” the question was asked again. AD shook his head as he heard each word, “It was all of us, it wasn’t just me… honestly.”
AD always rephrases questions asked about his success and his dominance and makes sure to clarify that it is him and his teammates. He says little in press conferences and lets his game do most of the talking, He’s the first to take accountability and the last to take credit. He called the opportunity to play in his ninth All-Star Game an “honor” and privilege” but is most excited he gets to be there with his family. Often called their anchor by many of his coaches and teammates, the name makes sense for a lot of reasons. Off the court, he’s grounded in what matters and on the court:
“I mean AD’s our anchor when it comes to our defense and he can do anything on the floor,” LeBron James said of his counterpart. “I don’t think we have another one in our league that can do it, that can guard 1-5 and we know that he can get a stop. I mean he’s been doing it so long and I think it’s taken for granted by our league when we talk about defensive players of the league and guys that can defend at a high level, it’s more than just blocking shots. It’s being able to switch out and disrupt offenses, it’s being able to switch out on perimeter marquee guys. The ability to shut down everything and disrupt everything. AD does that. He’s our anchor.”