Podcast: Anthony Davis was even better than advertised

Anthony Davis came to the Los Angeles Lakers with the expectations of being the next in a long line of historically great big men to lead the purple and gold to a championship. He not only lived up to the hype, he surpassed it.

On the latest episode of “I Love Basketball,” part the Silver Screen & Roll podcast network, Anthony Irwin and Sabreena Merchant discuss Davis’ outstanding first season with the Lakers. They start with a review of the trade that brought Davis to Los Angeles and what their opinion was of Davis after his seven seasons in New Orleans as well as their thoughts about the trade at the time. They then go into how Davis looked at the start of the year and how he improved over the course of the season.

Anthony and Sabreena then pivot into a recap of Davis’ Defensive Player of the Year candidacy, and how he set a tone for the entire Lakers roster on that end of the floor, before moving on to his postseason performance. For all of Davis’ brilliance during the regular season, the playoffs were truly when he showcased why the Lakers paid the price they did to bring him to L.A. Anthony and Sabreena finish the show by talking about how Davis took his game to another level in the playoffs.

This is the first part of a two-part crossover with Locked on Lakers. In the second episode, Anthony and Sabreena outline what Davis’ future with the Lakers could look like and how he can improve from his superstar baseline.

You can listen to the full episode below, and to make sure you never miss a show, subscribe to the Silver Screen and Roll podcast feed on iTunes, Spotify, Stitcher or Google Podcasts.

You can follow your hosts on Twitter at @AnthonyIrwinLA and @sabreenajm.