Kareem Abdul-Jabbar says Anthony Davis reminds him of himself

The Los Angeles Lakers have a long history of being the premier team for dominant big men like Wilt Chamberlain, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Shaquille O’Neal and — to a lesser extent — Dwight Howard. They added another name to that esteemed list last summer when they traded Lonzo Ball, Josh Hart, Brandon Ingram, the No. 4 pick in the 2019 NBA Draft, and two future first-round picks for All-NBA big man Anthony Davis.

Davis is widely regarded as the ideal big man for the modern NBA; someone that can block shots, put the ball on the floor, face up and knock down 3-pointers. However, Davis can also dominate in the post in the same style as some of the most dominant big men of all time, and on Monday, he got a glowing endorsement from one of them.

During a Twitter Q&A on Monday, Abdul-Jabbar said that of all the players that are currently playing in the NBA, Davis is the one that he sees himself in the most:

While it’s true that Abdul-Jabbar didn’t have the 3-point shot in his arsenal — having only made one in his illustrious 20-year career — he did have the sky hook, which is arguably the most dominant shot in the history of the NBA, and he knows it too.

It might a little unfair to Davis to compare him to the NBA’s all-time leading scorer and the greatest center of all time, but Davis will surely accept the compliment for what it is. Plus, it’s not like Davis is entirely undeserving of the comparison. This season, Davis is putting up numbers that only David Robinson and Hakeem Olajuwon have put up in their careers.

AD might not be Kareem, but he’s still really, really good. Now, we can only hope that Davis spends half the time in Los Angeles that Abdul-Jabbar did (14 years), and enjoys the career longevity that Cap did.

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