NBA Rumors: Coach Jason Kidd Shares His Insight On Lakers Superstar Anthony Davis
After suffering a huge disappointment in the 2018-19 NBA season, the Los Angeles Lakers succeeded to turn themselves into a legitimate title contender with the successful acquisition of All-Star center Anthony Davis this summer. Despite failing to secure a deal before the February NBA trade deadline, the Lakers still managed to acquire Davis in the 2019 NBA offseason by sending a trade package including Lonzo Ball, Brandon Ingram, Josh Hart, and three first-round picks to the New Orleans Pelicans.
Lakers lead assistant coach Jason Kidd may have experience mentoring players like Giannis Antetokounmpo when he served as the head coach of the Milwaukee Bucks, but he still can’t help himself but express his excitement over the opportunity to work with a player of Anthony Davis’ caliber. In an interview with ESPN, which is currently posted on YouTube, Kidd shared his insight on Davis, whom he called “one of the best players in the world.”
“When you talk about Anthony Davis… he can put the ball on the floor, he can pass,” Kidd said, as quoted by Lakers Nation. “We all know he can shoot the three, he can post up, defensively block shots, rebound. He has the total package and that’s why he’s one of the best players in the world. And so for us to be able to have him with LeBron and Kuzma and Rondo and some of these other guys on the team, it just makes it that much easier.”
Still watching @NBATV? Don't go anywhere, Jason Kidd's about to drop 30 and lead us to our first-ever NBA Finals win. pic.twitter.com/jkscIJoLvb
— Brooklyn Nets (@BrooklynNets) August 23, 2019
With his incredible performance on both ends of the floor, most people will agree with Jason Kidd that Anthony Davis is indeed one of the best players in the world. Davis is a multi-talented player. Aside from being a very reliable scoring option, he is also an incredible rebounder, facilitator, rim protector, and floor-spacer.
However, the Lakers team isn’t the only one that will benefit from the blockbuster deal with the Pelicans. Jason Kidd believes that Anthony Davis will learn lots of things from playing alongside LeBron James in Los Angeles.
“This will be his first time playing with someone like LeBron, so this will be a great learning experience and process for him, too.”
Aside from having the opportunity to play alongside one of the greatest basketball players of all time, this could also be the first time that Anthony Davis will be on a team that has a realistic chance of contending for the NBA championship title. The Lakers may have failed to find a third superstar in the 2019 NBA free agency, but they still managed to surround Davis and LeBron James with a quality supporting cast this summer.
After Kawhi Leonard signed with the Los Angeles Clippers, the Lakers decided to use their salary cap space to sign DeMarcus Cousins, Danny Green, Jared Dudley, Avery Bradley, Quinn Cook, and Troy Daniels. They also brought back some of their own free agents like Rajon Rondo, JaVale McGee, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, and Alex Caruso. With plenty of new faces on their roster, the Lakers still have a lot of work to do regarding their chemistry. However, if they find a way to maximize the talents on their roster and avoid serious injuries, the Lakers will undeniably be a huge headache to any powerhouse teams in the league next season.
