Chuck: “[Anthony Davis has] had an All-NBA season. He answered all his critics this year. … [He's] not the reason the Lakers suck.” Shaq: “Who is?” Chuck: “The rest of them.” 💀
Charles Barkley: The reason the Lakers suck is not because of Anthony Davis
NBAFriday, 12 April 2024 at 23:00
The Los Angeles Lakers who are currently the 10th seed in the west and can ultimately finish anywhere between 7-10 are going to have to fight once again to get into the playoffs. Last Night on TNT, the crew were talking about a potential play-in tournament game between the Golden State Warriors and the Los Angeles Lakers and which team will have the advantage.
That got the conversation going were Charles Barkley said, "[Anthony Davis has] had an All-NBA season. He answered all his critics this year. … [He's] not the reason the Lakers suck.”
Shaq responded with, "Who is?"
Barkley responded with, “The rest of them.”
With that being said, it has prompt us to look at the Lakers season as a whole and see why the Lakers have been struggling, and if Anthony Davis is the reason or not.
Laker's season so far
The Lakers started the season really strong in their first 23 games going 14-9 in that stretch. They also won the first ever in-season tournament in NBA history. After that, they struggled a lot going 16-17 in their next 33 games and having an overall record of 30-26 before the all-star break.
After the all-star break they have been a completely different team. They are 15-9 and have one of the better records post all-star break. With just two games left, it will be another season where the Lakers have to win one or two games in the play-in tournament just to get in.
So, now the question becomes why have the Lakers been so inconsistent this year? Barkley thinks it's not because of Davis and we are going to take a look at if he is right or not.
Counting on a 39 year old for too much
The first thing of why the Lakers have been inconsistent is because they are counting too much on LeBron James when he is 39 years old. They need him to do a lot in order for them to win and he just physically can't on a night to night basis like he used to. Now, even though LeBron is still having an unbelievable year this year and what he is doing at the age of 39 is very incredible.
He can't be superman anymore like he was back in the Heat and Cavalier days. He isn't that guy anymore that can on a consistent basis take over the game, and with the roster the Lakers have around him he has to more than he should.
However, if the Lakers can get into the playoffs you will start to see more of that vintage LeBron James and that is why the Lakers are a dangerous team once in the playoffs.
Roster Rotation/Coaching/Depth
The second thing is roster rotation. Darvin Ham throughout the season has played too much with who he is going to have starting every game and most of the time it isn't due to injuries.
Behind LeBron James and Anthony Davis, the next three best players the Lakers have are D'Angelo Russell, Austin Reaves, and Rui Hachimura. Throughout the season their have been stretches were one or more of them have been coming off the bench, rather than starting. That is something you can't do especially when you know those are your top five guys, they should be starting unless of injuries.
To go along with roster rotation is the lack of depth they have. It isn't too much of a problem, however you can tell that after the top five guys the Lakers really don't have much to offer and has been part of the reason they have struggled.
Another reason is coaching, where their have been multiple games that Darvin Ham has been out coached by the opposing team. Him experimenting too much with the starters and roster rotation has also been a factor in that as well.
Anthony Davis Health
Finally, every year since Anthony Davis has been with the Lakers the question becomes, can he stay healthy? This year he has played 74 games which is the most since he has been with the Lakers and the most since 2017.
The last time Davis played more than 60+ games with the Lakers was back in 2019-2020 when they won the NBA Finals. He has also had a great statistical season to go along with that in averaging 24.5 points, 12.6 rebounds, 2.4 blocks and shooting 55.4% from the field.
To answer the question is Charles Barkley right when he says Davis is not the problem this year? It is safe to say with everything we have mentioned that he is not the reason and it is other factors as to why the Lakers have been inconsistent.
Anthony Davis is healthy and is playing like an all-star in which he should be, and if the Lakers can get into the playoffs with a healthy Anthony Davis and LeBron James. They will be a dangerous team.
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