After Anthony Davis’ outstanding performance against the Cleveland Cavaliers on Saturday, Los Angeles Lakers guard Austin Reaves had a message for those who have been criticizing the big man all season.
Davis has received his fair share of mockery and comments throughout what has been a disappointing season for him so far. AD was widely chastised after scoring just 10 points in their game against the Dallas Mavericks on Wednesday. While the great big man did rack up 13 rebounds, four assists, and one block and steal, his offensive performance was noticeably weak. And with the game ending in a three-point loss to the Lakers, his flaws were highlighted even more.
However, in their game against the Cavs, Davis more than made up for his prior performance. He scored 32 points on 13-of-20 shooting from the field, while also grabbing 13 rebounds, dishing out three assists, stealing two, and blocking three shots.
As the Lakers faced the Twin Towers of Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley, Davis’ presence was undeniably significant. In the end, Los Angeles prevailed 121-115, improving to 10-7 on the season.
Reaves made sure to remind the naysayers what Davis had just done in his postgame news conference after the victory. And for those who continued to criticize the All-Star center for his inconsistency, AR-15 stressed that bad nights happen and that AD is still a terrific player.
“Everybody’s quick to murder AD when he has an off night. … He’s affecting the game more than what the average human is picking up on,” Reaves said of Davis, per Dave McMenamin of ESPN.
The Anthony Davis that showed up on Saturday is definitely the Davis that the Lakers need if they want to win a title this 2022-23 season. While Austin Reaves is right to defend his teammate, however, the fact of the matter is there are high expectations on him and the Purple and Gold to deliver on a daily basis.
For a fanbase so used to winning, anything short of excellence isn’t accepted. Hopefully, Davis will be able to use the criticisms as fuel to prove everyone how wrong the doubters are in their assessment of him. The performance against the Cavs is definitely a great start.