New Orleans Pelicans star big man Anthony Davis is making sure people remember who he is. When NBA general managers were asked before the season who they would pick to start a franchise with, they chose Karl-Anthony Towns, not Anthony Davis. When the media voted on the All-NBA teams at the end of last season, Anthony Davis was not picked on any of the three teams despite being the only player in the NBA in the top 10 for points per game, rebounds per game and blocks per game. And Anthony Davis also is forgotten a lot when people are asked about top five players in the league. It’s time to look alive and respect ‘The Brow’.
For the first time in his career, Anthony Davis posted back-to-back 40+ point games. He followed his opening night 50 point performance in a Pelicans loss to the Denver Nuggets by scoring 45 points on 55 percent shooting, 17 rebounds, three assists and two steals, in another Pelicans loss. This time to the juggernaut Golden State Warriors.
Anthony Davis becomes the first player to score at least 90 points in first 2 games of the season since Michael Jordan, who scored 91 in 1986-87. His output in the first two games of the season is only topped by Wilt Chamberlain who did it in 1961 and 1962.
Unfortunately, once again the Pelicans didn’t get much help for Davis from his teammates. Point guard Tim Frazier was the second leading scorer with 21 points and also handed out 10 assists but no other Pelicans starter scored more than five points on the night. Lance Stephenson and Dante Cunningham both contributed 15 points coming off the bench.
Pelicans forward Dante Cunningham and head coach Alvin Gentry added some more about Davis’ historic night, according to Justin Verrier of ESPN.
“It’s kind of [like] watching somebody play NBA 2K-type thing,” Pelicans forward Dante Cunningham said, “where you just go out and shoot everything. That’s a 100 [overall] player, so you just hit ‘X’ and he’s gonna dunk and make every shot.”
“I think other guys have got to make the shots,” coach Alvin Gentry said after a 122-114 loss to the Golden State Warriors at Smoothie King Center. “Obviously with A.D. going the way he is, they’re double- and triple-teaming him, so the ball comes out. We have to have guys step in and make shots. That’s the only way to get the triple-teams and double-teams off A.D.”
Two games into the season, the Pelicans appear to be barreling full speed ahead into their worst-case scenario.
“It’s not frustrating, guys,” Gentry said. “It’s just what it is.”
