Anthony Davis is the fulcrum of the Los Angeles Lakers — in the words of another LeBron James co-star — starting…now.

The Lakers rewarded Davis, 30, with a record contract extension in August. LeBron called him the face of the franchise. Darvin Ham dubbed him the “heart and soul” of the team. Behind the scenes, AD has become a more vocal leader, especially with center-mates Jaxson Hayes and Christian Wood.

Davis looked dominant in the preseason. He averaged 14.4 points on 53.5% shooting in 18.1 minutes. He shut down all forays into the paint, highlighted by a six-swat effort in the finale vs. the Phoenix Suns (Jusuf Nurkic shot 1-for-11).

The stars are aligned for Davis. He's in an ideal place physically and mentally. The team's depth and continuity should make his life easier. Fittingly, Davis will open his 12th NBA campaign matched up with the current gold standard for bigs — and the man who stands between the Lakers and the NBA Finals: Nikola Jokic.

Before the regular season tips off on Tuesday, let's make a few bold Anthony Davis predictions for the 2023-24 regular season.

Anthony Davis will have his best 3-point shooting season in Los Angeles

The buzz surrounding the return of AD's jumper was ignited by Austin Reaves on a podcast in September after LeBron James' minicamp. Davis downplayed the importance of those reps.

A clunky preseason would have tempered expectations. Instead, the jumper has lived up to the hype. Davis shot 6-for-13 from 3 and smoothly nailed a handful of 15+ footers. Ham even channeled Frank Vogel by requesting AD take a certain number of triples per game (six, in Ham's case).

Ham ultimately walked back the number; he and AD clarified that the idea is for Davis to attack from all three levels. Either way, Davis appears primed for a bounce-back shooting season (he's been putrid since the bubble). The most 3s Davis has made in a season with the Lakers is 218, in 2019-20. He'll eclipse that this season. If he can drain enough shots to keep defenses honest, the Lakers' offense — increasingly 5-out — should be a top-10 unit for the first time since 2020.

AD will play a lot of 4

Early in the summer, Davis informed the Lakers that he would rather not exclusively play center, as he did in 2022-23. He'll start, close, and spend most of his time at the 5, but he understandably wants a break from holding down the fort at all times.

“It's been good,” he said after scrimmaging at power forward in camp. “It feels good to stay out of 100 pick-and-rolls a game.”

Christian Wood, a spacer, is a cushy fit next to Davis; AD's presence can mask his defensive inefficiencies. Jaxson Hayes — who has long studied AD — isn't as seamless of a frontcourt partner, though Hayes has impressed in the preseason. (Of course, midseason moves could alter the rotation.)

The Lakers, historically, are at their best with AD at the 5 and LeBron at the 4 alongside capable shooters and ball-handlers. That's still the blueprint. #LakersTwitter will likely overreact to clunky two-big lineup stints during random games, but, allowing Davis to regularly spell at the 4 will behoove him and the Lakers in the long run.

Davis will lead the Lakers in scoring

For all the grumblings about Davis' inconsistent offensive aggression, he wasn't too shabby in 2022-23. His 25.9 PPG was the fourth-best mark of his career, on a career-best 56.3% from the field — and without hitting jumpers. Yet, LeBron led the Lakers in scoring at 28.9 PPG (unheard of for a 38-year-old).

The Lakers have more talent orbiting their superstars. Austin Reaves, D'Angelo Russell, Rui Hachimura, Christian Wood, and Gabe Vincent can get 20 on any given night. LeBron defers more than ever.

The Lakers know they need to become less reliant on James's scoring. AD should — and will — lead them in scoring for the first time since 2019-20.

Anthony Davis will play his most games with the Lakers

Over the offseason, Davis healed the complex bone spur/navicular fracture foot issue that plagued him throughout last season — and possibly dating back to Kentucky. And yet, including the postseason, he played in 45 of the Lakers' final 48 games.

Davis is yet to surpass 62 games in Los Angeles. Even though he's technically exempt from the Player Participation Policy, he's determined to post as often as possible. The Lakers' depth and versatility will hopefully enable Davis to manage his body and approach 70 games — eight more than his high in Los Angeles.

Anthony Davis will win Defensive Player of the Year … at least

Davis insisted he's fully focused on rings, not individual accolades. Even so, he doesn't sound unsalty about the absence of a DPOY trophy in his case (he won't appreciate this poll).

Davis was the most impactful defender in last year's playoffs. It was, far and away, the primary reason the Lakers advanced through two rounds. At times, his defensive contributions were so all-encompassing that it felt as if a group of four pedestrians plus AD would have held up.

If AD reaches 65+ games and anchors a top-5 unit for a contending Lakers squad, he'll have a surefire, and likely deserved, DPOY case. Of course, if all that happens, he'll be a fixture in the MVP race, as well.