Following a championship with the Lakers three seasons ago, Anthony Davis has had a rough two-year stretch. The eight-time All-Star, over the past two campaigns, was sidelined for over half of the Lakers’ games due to his injuries.
Nonetheless, Davis, who also earned praise from the Lakers HC has recently become the star of the show for the Purple and Gold franchise in the current preseason matchups. His impressive gameplay on the court has inspired his coach, Darvin Ham, to set expectations for him in the new season.
Darvin Ham talks about Anthony Davis threes pointers
Following Anthony Davis’ impressiveness on the court, Lakers’ head coach Darvin Ham is hoping to see him add a new dimension to his offensive prowess this new season. A post on X( formerly Twitter) by Legion Hoops revealed the coach challenging the star man. “I want to see six 3-point attempts a game,” as reported by Legion Hoops.
In another report by ESPN’s Dave McMenamin, Coach Darvin Ham expressed that he believes Davis can live up to his expectations, and he wouldn’t make a request if his star man can’t meet up. Darvin said: “Three per half, at least. I wouldn’t put that on him if I didn’t think he was capable.”
As reported by ESPN, Anthony Davis, in his first season with the Lakers, averaged 26.1 points, 9.3 rebounds and 3.2 assists in 62 games in the 2019-2020 campaign. He was selected to play in his seventh All-Star game and won his first NBA championship.
The 30-year-old star man appears to have impressed his coach since joining in 2019 and also reported to embraced the coach’s request. He disclosed that he has been working with the assistant coach Chris Kent over the offseason to improve his outside shot. The Lakers, who had a team three-point percentage of 34.6 percent last season and were ranked 25th in the league, would greatly benefit from Davis’s improved shooting form.
Anthony Davis performance during NBA preseason
In the Laker’s first two training games, Anthony Davies has exceeded his coach’s expectations, making three of his six three-point shots on a total of 27 attempts. minutes of brief action versus the Brooklyn Nets and Golden State Warriors. This marks a significant increase for Davis, who only averaged 1.3 three-point attempts last season. His highest average in a season was 3.5, which was during the 2019–20 season, his first with the Lakers.
To put it in context, All-Star guards Darius Garland and Devin Booker both averaged 6.0 three-point attempts last season. Among the players who regularly played at power forward or center and attempted at least that many threes were Julius Randle (8.3) and Lauri Markkanen (7.7).
In the first two preseason games, the Lakers team has displayed better three-point shooting, making 35 out of 93 attempts (37.6%). This improvement is particularly welcomed for Davis, as he has faced significant challenges with his outside shot since the Lakers’ championship victory in 2020. Though his previous seasons have been tough for him because of injuries, The Lakers fans would hope to see Davis stay fit to help them challenge for the championship.
How well do you see Anthony Davis fare in the upcoming NBA season? Make sure to tell us in the comments.
