NBA
Anthony Davis has reportedly been ‘training more this offseason than I’ve seen with him as a Laker’
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All posts by Antonio KozlowUpdated29 Sep 2023
This Thursday, both Lakers’ GM Rob Pelinka and coach Darvin Ham attended the press and talked about what’s been going on in the purple and gold camp this summer, as they head into training camp next week. According to the leaders of the Los Angeles club, stars Anthony Davis and LeBron James have been putting extra work this offseason and are inspiring the rest of the team.
Pelinka gave special mention to the 30-year-old big man, who is considered by most as the league’s best defensive player in the past playoffs, and is expected to remain healthy this upcoming campaign to reach an even higher level of competitiveness.
“When AD came up for the extension, Darvin and I had great interactions with him,” said Pelinka. “And the theme was, ‘We want to commit to you, but we want you to commit to us.’ And one of the aspects that we addressed with him in that exchange was becoming a leader and being the hardest worker, and he really did that this offseason.”
Darvin Ham on how he will use Anthony Davis and Christian Wood in different lineups for the Lakers#LakeShow pic.twitter.com/fHsw7S1iFV
— LakeShow Highlights (@LSH_lakeshow) September 28, 2023
According to the Lakers GM, he’s never seen him take in the responsibility of being a leader so seriously as he’s done this summer.
“Training more this offseason than I’ve seen with him as a Laker. He’s taken on that leadership mantle and I think he knows that when the franchise invests in him, like we did this summer, he’s gonna return that. That’s just his character. That’s who Anthony Davis is. And we’re excited to see that.”
As for coach Ham, he can’t help but notice that AD is transforming himself into one of the most versatile centers the game has ever seen.
“Just the cross-training that he participated in and just going through a summer just not trying to remain injury-free but to actually dive into his body,” he expressed. “He came back leaner, stronger, quicker, more explosive. People forget, for a player at his position, whether it’s the 4 or the 5, just a frontline player of his skill set and the magnitude of which he impacts the game, he’s only 30 years old.
“So there’s a huge, huge road still ahead of him in how he can lead this franchise and hopefully put some more banners up here.”
Coach Ham shared how LeBron’s preparation for his 21st NBA season has inspired the whole roster to work even harder this summer
LeBron James‘ ambition is a motor shared by anyone who’s around him. It’s contagious! The Lakers star has been preparing this summer for a historical 21st season in the NBA, and the entire roster is inspired by his continous sacrifice.
“That really puts the spirit into our entire group, seeing him preparing (like that),” Pelinka summarized his impact on the rest of the roster.
Not only is a 21-year career in basketball almost unprecedented, the 38-year-old he came off last campaign with outstanding averages of 28.9 points, 8.3 rebounds and 6.8 assists. Coach Ham recognized that the team feels the need to take some of the responsibility off of LeBron so he can enter the playoffs with full energy.
“That goes right into what’s been said so far, the continuity of building a well-balanced roster,” the trainer said. “It goes into making us more efficient in how we manage him. Now that we have, top to bottom, what we feel like is a highly balanced, skilled, younger team of guys who’ve logged a ton of NBA minutes, we can surround both (LeBron) and AD with players that are eager to contribute and impact winning. (And of course) ‘Bron does a great job of taking care of himself.”
