Anthony Davis was exceptional during the Los Angeles Lakers' Game 1 victory. He tallied 30 points and 23 rebounds, and his defensive impact was, once again, otherworldly, as he prevented the Golden State Warriors from even thinking about entering the paint. With Davis playing like he did in Game 1, the Warriors will have plenty of difficulties as the series progresses.
However, in Game 2, the Warriors ratcheted up their coverage of Davis. With Kevon Looney nursing an illness, the Warriors put Draymond Green on Davis from the get-go. And it worked like a charm for the Dubs; the Warriors ended up holding the Lakers' star big man to just 11 points and seven rebounds on 5-11 shooting from the field.
At his best, Anthony Davis is such a monstrous, game-changing presence on both ends. But when he struggles, he tends to fall hard on his backside, like he did in Game 2. This maddening inconsistency from Davis, predictably, led to some understandable frustrations from Lakers fans, who couldn't seem to fathom why a player as talented as AD fails to perform at his best on a nightly basis.
In particular, Game 2s appear to be the Lakers star's kryptonite. Against the Memphis Grizzlies in the first round, that was when Xavier Tillman Sr. outplayed the eight-time All-Star.
Dawg Game 2 Anthony Davis in this years playoffs is so bad man
— Oscar Robertson burner (@Bigoburner14) May 5, 2023
Anthony Davis putting in work every other game ain’t gon cut it
— Adrianna (@dretellez) May 5, 2023
Anthony Davis going from best in the world to Javale McGee on a game by game basis is astounding.
— Rouse (@imJarrettJR) May 5, 2023
Nevertheless, some Lakers fans decided to hold their judgment towards Anthony Davis. It wasn't just Davis who struggled anyway, as a team that was on the wrong end of a 27-point blowout certainly saw a lot of things fail to go their way beyond a singular disappearance from their second-best player.
no Anthony Davis slander please
— gamble (@tye6x) May 5, 2023
At the very least, other Lakers fans gave credit to Warriors forward Draymond Green for such an incredible defensive performance. Even though Green stands at just 6'6, his ability to maximize his 7'1 wingspan, along with his innate defensive instincts, allowed him to make scoring a nightmarish endeavor for Anthony Davis.
Draymond did a good job of keeping him out of the paint. Sometimes you have to give the defense credit.
— Ken Goldsholl (@KenGoldsholl) May 5, 2023
Shout out to Draymond green ,basically made Anthony Davis a non factor ,great defense
— 🏀 🏀 (@tripleBlakk) May 5, 2023
But man, really can’t say enough about the defense. Draymond was tremendous. Star of this one *for me* w all due respect to how Steph played tonight.
— Nekias (Nuh-KY-us) Duncan (@NekiasNBA) May 5, 2023
One thing's for sure, it will be interesting to see how the Lakers adjust to the Warriors' Game 2 chess moves. It is imperative for the Lakers to try and get Davis some easier buckets, as they cannot afford to have another off game from him in Game 3 on Saturday.
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