Get ready NBA, the reign of AD has already started to take effect, and it will continue for a decade barring any injuries, and his teammates actually giving him the ball down the stretch.
The Pelicans (still the Hornets back in 2012) knew what they were getting in Davis when they took him with the first pick in the 2012 draft, he was lean, but his athleticism was something that you couldn’t go past ever. Standing at 6 foot 10, around the average size of your normal Power Forward, it was Davis incredible wingspan that captured the attention of the league, and the Hornets. In 2010, at a Kevin Durant camp, his wingspan was measured at 7 foot 2 inches, but by the time 2012 rolled around, the combine had his wingspan listed at 7 foot 5.5 inches. His incredible reach was the reason he blocked an average of 4.7 shots a game while at Kentucky, and a monstrous 5.8 blocks per 40 minutes. This enticed the Hornets to take him, and they didn’t make a mistake.
Now, 2 years after he was drafted, it’s clear that Davis has arrived. Forget Howard, Griffin and Love setting the benchmark for the big men, its Davis who is now the benchmark for the other experienced players. Howard, Griffin and Love are now beginning to be judged against Davis, and they aren’t even close so far this season. He has started to stamp his authority against great players too, such as Cousins, who he got the best of on the 18th of November when he led the Pelicans to a 106-100 victory over Cousins and the Kings, he had 28 points, 9 rebounds and 3 blocks, and led the game winning comeback after halftime.
He is up in every single category from last season, and has limited his turnovers and fouls, showing his development after just 2 seasons with the Pelicans. Last season, he averaged a respectable 20.8 points, 10 rebounds and 2.8 blocks a game, while shooting above 50% from the field, but this year, he has utterly dominated the games he has played in, averaging 25.5 points, 11.4 rebounds and a massive 3.9 blocks a game, while shooting 57.9% from the field. He started his 2014/15 season with a 27-point, 17-rebound, 9-block game, immediately showing his intentions for this season, to be the best in the NBA, and to put the Pelicans back on the map in the playoffs. He is utterly dominating games, when his teammates get him the ball, which leads to my next point about Davis.
Demand it AD! The Pelicans now have to get used to being back with a franchise player, the last, Chris Paul in the Hornet days. After watching the final quarter of the New Orleans vs. Portland game, which the Pelicans took a double-digit lead into, it was clear that his teammates weren’t looking for Davis like they should have been. This wasn’t his fault, he had good position against Lopez in the post, but his teammates refused to pass it to him, opting to shoot contested jump shots, or quick threes, which landed them in trouble, eventually losing to Portland 102-93.
The one thing I’d love to see Davis do is demand the ball more, he does already, but he needs to be the focal point of the offense. Holiday, Evans and Gordon are all great players, but they need to feed Davis in the post, this will net the Pelicans more wins, as well as creating more shots for the three guards, with Davis drawing away help defenders leaving Evans or Holiday open to cut, or take a wide open jumper.
This season though, it’s Davis’ MVP to lose. I think now the only thing that can stop Davis winning the MVP is the Pelicans not winning enough games, due to his teammates not using Davis like they should be. I had initially picked Blake Griffin to take it this season, but so far, he doesn’t even look close to being an MVP candidate. Davis reign as the NBA’s best player could begin at the end of this season, and could continue for years to come, there is no defender in the league that seems to be able to stop Davis, and until we get one, it could be a long couple of years for teams in his division, and as long as his teammates start to get him the ball more often, the ceiling for Davis’ potential is still a long way away.
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