During the Lakers' playoff run, Anthony Davis has often looked like the best basketball player in the world—oddly, he's also often looked like a total non-entity. Over the Lakers eight playoff games, Davis has more or less alternated brilliant offensive performances and straight up bad ones. Sometimes, he's unstoppable; others, he's incredibly stoppable. In the Lakers' 100-127 drubbing at the hands of the Warriors, Anthony Davis was stymied by Draymond Green and Kevon Looney in the post, scoring just 11 points on 5-11 shooting and grabbing only seven rebounds.
In odd numbered games, Davis is otherworldly, averaging 28.5 points, 17.8 rebounds and 4.0 blocks while shooting 55.5 percent from the floor. Conversely, in even number games, he's pedestrian, putting up 13.0 points, 10.3 rebounds and 3.8 blocks per game while shooting a grisly 40.4 percent from the floor. Unsurprisingly, the Lakers are 3-1 when Davis plays well, but 2-2 when he struggles.
This inconsistency is maddening (and admittedly also pretty funny), but it speaks to Davis' fundamental nature as a player. At his best, Davis can reach a level that just about no other NBA player has ever reached. Outside of David Robinson and Hakeem Olajuawon, no big man has ever offered Davis' cocktail of size, strength, mobility and overall dominance. Sadly, Davis is only occasionally at his best as his Lakers tenure and career in general have been plagued by injuries and extended ennui.
As such, Davis is the best argument for why the Lakers can win their second title in four seasons while still being the primary reason for why they probably won't. With LeBron James clearly still hobbled by a foot injury, the Lakers have no choice but to ride the maddening rollercoaster of Davis' game to game production. Considering Anthony Davis laid an egg in Game 2, his recent showings in these playoffs dictates that he will put up a 50 point triple double in a rousing Lakers' Game 3 win over the Warriors.
When Davis is fully engaged, he totally takes over games; for proof, just look at his monstrous stretch in the 2020 NBA playoffs when he led the Lakers to a title in the Bubble. The question isn't whether Davis can still play at championship-caliber level, but whether Davis can stay engaged for more than one game at a time.
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