Anthony Davis has always felt most at home playing the power forward spot next to a strapping big man — on both ends of the floor.
During his first two years in Los Angeles, Davis made 1.0 of 3.2 threes per game, and as a floor spacer, he was a bigger threat to drive to the basket. Since moving to a center role in the 2021-2022 season, the Kentucky alum has made .3 threes from 1.5 attempts per game.
On defense, AD is still a menace, but he is no longer the roamer and help-side defender he was as a power forward. At the five, he’s under immense pressure to protect the rim, unlike when he played next to Dwight Howard and JaVale McGee during the Lakers’ 2020 title-winning team.
It’s been crystal-clear to several analysts that the Lakers must move AD back to his natural spot. The Purple and Gold are apparently heeding the call.
At the start of this year’s free-agency period, ESPN’s Dave McMenamin reported that LeBron James was willing to take a pay cut to help sign “an established big man” such as Jonas Valanciunas to play next to Davis. James never had to take that pay cut as Valanciunas inked a three-year, $30 million deal with the Wizards, a contract the Lakers couldn’t offer due to some players exercising player options.
However, Valanciunas could still end up on the Lakers later this year, per several insiders. On the “Hoops Collective” podcast, Brian Windhorst and Tim Bontemps of ESPN reported that the Lakers would strongly target Valanciunas when he becomes trade-eligible on Dec. 15.
“I wouldn’t rule out Jonas Valanciunas eventually ending up on the Lakers this year. That’s all I’m going to say,” Windhorst said.
Windhorst also cited new Lakers head coach JJ Redick’s recent comments that the franchise wishes to add a “big, bruising center” to the roster.
A frontcourt of Valanciunas and Davis could be lethal and the answer to the Nuggets puzzle that the Lakers haven’t unlocked in recent years. The 32-year-old Lithuanian is the exact partner AD needs — an old-school big who boxes out, rebounds, sets hard screens and protects the rim.
The potential pairing could also be a good answer to the Timberwolves’ twin tower lineup of Rudy Gobert and Karl-Anthony Towns, or OKC’s frontcourt of Chet Holmgren and Isaiah Hartenstein.
Valanciunas could be the one who propels Davis to return to his prime self, aka Pelicans AD.
