For all of the Phoenix Suns' strengths in the aftermath of putting together a lethal scoring trio of Devin Booker, Kevin Durant, and Bradley Beal, they still have a potential weakness on the interior, Jusuf Nurkic's addition notwithstanding. And during a preseason clash on Thursday night, Anthony Davis and the Los Angeles Lakers exploited that weakness to the best of their abilities, with Davis putting the fear of a higher being into the Suns' hearts with an amazing defensive first quarter.

Davis showed that he, indeed, remains one of the most stifling defensive players not just in today's NBA, but in NBA history. The Lakers star had four blocks in the first quarter against the Suns, and according to StatMuse, the Suns only scored five buckets when AD was on the floor.

That was simply a masterclass defensive performance from Anthony Davis, showing that despite still being in preseason, he doesn't take any breaks on that end of the court. Nevertheless, there are a few important things to point out to explain the context of the game. The most important thing to point out is that the Suns did not have both Devin Booker and Bradley Beal active; that alone made it more difficult for the Suns to get into a rhythm during the first quarter.

Even then, this defensive performance from AD gives the Lakers a blueprint to match up well against the Suns; given Davis' mobility on the perimeter, he could hang with the Suns' pull-up artists all over the court, forcing them into tough shots all the while serving as a deterrent for those attacking the rim.