The Los Angeles Lakers have been attempting to pick up the pace during the ongoing NBA season. With the team currently placed on the 9 seed of the Western Conference Table, LeBron James and his crew have been looking to make each game count. With the 39-year-old being out of the games because of a recent left ankle injury, the pressure to lead the team fell on the shoulders of Anthony Davis.

The Lakers up against the Golden State Warriors proved to be an enormous challenge for the power forward, recently coming off the All-Star break. Unfortunately, Stephen Curry and his teammates ended up leading the charge and defeated their rivals with a score of 128-110. Despite the loss, the performance by the Lakers was nothing short of commendable, with Anthony Davis pulling off an impressive 27 points, 15 points, and 1 assist. While there are people who would have applauded Davis’s efforts, team coach Darvin Ham was not among them.

According to a post by @DanWoikeSports, Ham seemingly blamed Davis for the defensive collapse. In a statement, he exclaimed that Anthony Davis losing his voice, and his inability to communicate, proved to be a major factor for the Lakers to fall against the Warriors.

Ham’s opinion about the Lakers’ defense may have had some merit, as seen when the first three baskets by the Warriors ended up being all three-pointers. Furthermore, Curry scoring 16 points of his 32 in the opening frame itself did not help the Lakers in any way. Knowing the defensive capabilities of Davis, the Warriors specifically targeted him during the game by using on-ball actions via ball screens and off-ball screening actions like wide pindown. Once Davis was out of his minutes, Warriors rookie Trayce Jackson-Davis took advantage by scoring 13 points in five minutes.

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It is hard for fans to determine whether any extra effort by Davis could have contributed to strengthening the Lakers’ defense. What we did see, however, was that the player led the offensive charge and might have excelled if they had been facing some other team.

The Lakers defensive rating was off to a bad start this season

Back in December 2023, LeBron James had gone out of his way to state that the Lakers are “one of the best defensive teams in the league”. Their performance during the latter season, however, made people question that statement.

By the time the year 2023 drew to a close, the Lakers’ defensive rating had reportedly dropped to 118.2, which ranked 19. Much of it was because the rival teams had been shooting better inside the paint, behind the arc, and at the free-throw line at a much higher rate against the Lakers than any other team. Even though Darvin Ham’s multiple starting lineup changes with the hopes of better defensive performances, the results seemed to come slowly.

The Lakers’ current defensive rating reportedly stands at 114.9. While it may not be necessary for Anthony Davis to lead the charge every time, there is still a need for improvement if the team wishes to make it to the championship.