In a candid post-game interview with the Inside the NBA crew, Anthony Davis admitted that ‘thinking too much’ is part of the reason he has some passive games.
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Davis and Nikola Jokic had an exciting to-and-fro battle to close Game 2. Both big men were the only scorers for their teams down the stretch, with Jokic getting the Nuggets’ last 11 points.
After a missed shot by Alex Caruso and a blocked shot on Danny Green, the Lakers needed a buzzer-beater from Davis to take the game.
Anthony Davis’s perfect response to Charles Barkley’s question on playing passively
The great Charles Barkley is definitely not the only person wondering why Davis is not always assertive. While Barkley took a rather aggressive approach to his question, one cannot help but feel they would’ve done the same in his position.
For a transcendent talent like Davis not to dominate every night is kind of mind boggling.
Barkley straight up asked this question:
“You know Anthony, you have an advantage every single night you step on the floor. But some nights you don’t seem aggressive. What is that about you that some nights you’re just not aggressive?” Barkley said.
Davis had a really cool response to the query.
He focussed on how he maybe analyses things a little too much and hence ends being a little too passive in the game. He also highlighted how LeBron James constantly asks him to be more aggressive on the court and turn things up a notch.
“I just, I go out there, and I think I think too much. You know, I know some of the moves I want to get to going into each game, and I look to make the right plays instead of going out and, like you said, being aggressive. And you know, it’s a big difference, the games where I’m aggressive it definitely carries our team, it helps our team, and that’s gotta be my mindset from here on out.”
Anthony Davis on how LeBron James eggs him on
“I try to go out there and play the right way but sometimes… you know especially [LeBron James], he tells me all the time, like, ‘Alright, it’s enough passing, it’s time to go to work, be aggressive, be the player that you are.’”
Davis’s play this postseason has earned him praise from all quarters this postseason. Many have deservedly called him LeBron’s best ever teammate. Davis even has a handy chance of winning the Finals MVP if the Lakers get there and he continues to play like this.
