Lakers News: Vocal Patrick Beverley, Team Leaders Galvanized Anthony Davis In Meeting Last Weekend
Los Angeles Lakers All-Star center Anthony Davis knew from even before the start of the current season that he needed more looks from his teammates.
Per Jovan Buha of The Athletic, Davis apparently walked into new head coach Darvin Ham's office at some point prior to the start of the regular season and wrote this on Ham's whiteboard:
"2022-23, throw the ball to AD."
Catchy refrain, that.
Over the past three games, with LeBron James sidelined due to a left adductor strain (he is questionable tonight against the San Antonio Spurs), Davis has been by far the Lakers' top bucket getter. In the three contest, the 6'10" big man out of the University of Kentucky is averaging 33 points a night on 57% shooting, as well as 16 boards, 2.3 dimes, 2.3 blocks, and a steal.
“I think it’s extremely important [for Davis to be engaged on offense],” Ham said. “AD has to be the leading force, the leading charge just in terms of how we want to play inside and outside basketball. … He can carry us through certain segments of the game and, obviously, we see what he does down the stretch.”
“AD was great in the half-roll [on Friday night in a 128-121 win against the Detroit Pistons] out of pick-and-roll,” Ham said. “They doubled teamed him a ton whenever he would isolate in the post or whatever, fronting him and doing different double schemes at him. But he stayed the course and stayed aggressive and 21 free throws. I think that’s wonderful. For him to knock 18 of them down … Just his presence, man. He’s been a big force for us all year and tonight was no different.”
Buha reports that a lot of this reinvigorated Davis happened as the result of a team meeting Saturday, with the Lakers on a five-game losing streak at the time. Team leaders during the meeting emphasized that Davis needed to be more assertive and step up as the focus of the club's offensive touches. Patrick Beverley was especially vocal, according to Davis.
“The main guy who a lot of us had to get used to for that was Pat,” Davis reflected. “But he gives good messages. And he said this thing one time, he was like, ‘If I yell, ‘I love you,’ you not gonna get mad, you know what I’m saying?’ So listen to the message and not the tone.”
L.A. has since won two in a row with Davis running the show, to improve its record to a still-bad 4-10. The team will get an opportunity to win its third straight tonight against the 6-11 Spurs.
