As they do every year, ESPN is ranking their top 100 players for the upcoming NBA season, and per usual, the list is questionable, including their placement of Los Angeles Lakers star big man Anthony Davis.
There were already plenty of questionable decisions when they released their 100-26 list earlier this week, like Andrew Wiggins over Kyrie Irving, or Klay Thompson at 37, but it has only gotten worse as the list has continued.
Especially for Anthony Davis.
Where ESPN ranked Lakers star Anthony Davis and why it’s wrong:
ESPN ranks Anthony Davis at number 20, despite him constantly proving why he’s better than numerous players that he is listed behind on a constant basis.
The only part of his game listed under how he can improve is based on his health and how many games he’s missed for the Los Angeles Lakers during his tenure there. While that may be a major issue, it shouldn’t hold him back this much when compared to other star NBA players.
For context on how much Davis was snubbed, he was listed behind Bradley Beal, Rudy Gobert, Jimmy Butler, Trae Young, Karl-Anthony Towns, and Paul George. While the last three may be justified due to the health questions brought up under Anthony Davis’ ranking, he definitely could have been moved up two to three spots without losing too much sleep.
We have yet to see the top ten rankings from ESPN, however, it is unlikely that any player listed near the top of their list is better than the Lakers superstar.
Davis is an elite defender when healthy and one of the most versatile big men in the NBA on offense as well, following only Karl-Anthony Towns, Nikola Jokic, and Joel Embiid in that category.
He is a massive impact player, and it seems like everybody has forgotten about that since they won the championship back in 2020.
While the Lakers have definitely struggled to make an impact as a team, most of that issue has been due to the absence of Davis from the roster, not a lack of great play from the All-Star big man.
When paired with potentially the greatest player of all-time LeBron James, although later in his career, it unlocked new heights for Anthony Davis to achieve both individually and as a teammate.
Why is it so farfetched to believe that Davis can return to being the star big man that probably should be playing center once he returns to the court? He has all of the tools and knowledge to do just that.
It’s not out of the realm of possibility that the former MVP and DPOY candidate reestablishes himself as a top ten player in the NBA again next season, proving everybody who doubted him wrong.
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While many fans strongly disagree with ESPN’s decision to place many players in the position they are in, Anthony Davis may be one of the players receiving a majority of fan pushback along with Kyrie Irving. But ultimately, ESPN does this every year and every year they receive the same criticism for it, so nothing is likely to change.