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Anthony Davis officially on MVP watch as Lakers rout Wizards

WASHINGTON, DC - DECEMBER 04: Anthony Davis #3 of the Los Angeles Lakers dunks the ball in the fourth quarter of the game against the Washington Wizards at Capital One Arena on December 04, 2022 in Washington, DC. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Greg Fiume/Getty Images)
WASHINGTON, DC - DECEMBER 04: Anthony Davis #3 of the Los Angeles Lakers dunks the ball in the fourth quarter of the game against the Washington Wizards at Capital One Arena on December 04, 2022 in Washington, DC. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Greg Fiume/Getty Images)

The Los Angeles Lakers are on fire these days after defeating the Milwaukee Bucks on Friday. It is no coincidence that Anthony Davis is the reason why! For the first time in recent memory, AD outplayed Giannis Antetokounmpo to the tune of 44 points,10 rebounds, 4 assists, and 3 blocks. To say that this dude is playing the best stretch of basketball in his career right now is a gross understatement to the point of hating!

These post-game reports are usually about Lakers analysis and growth. This game was a massacre and the Los Angeles Lakers now look like a team that can blow out bad teams all around the NBA. If you don’t think that’s a good thing, refer to this franchise’s level of success last season.

The Lakers rolled over the Washington Wizards 130-119 in a game that was not that close. Anyone want to talk about anything else? How about Dennis Schroder returning to the lineup after he and his wife welcomed a baby? Bet that baby is cute huh? Congratulations to the Schroders on their new addition!

How about Lonnie Walker IV competing in the Slam Dunk contest? We know LeBron never will…

He finished with 20 points as well. Breaking news to Lake Show Life! The Los Angeles Lakers are playoff contenders. Not the play-in, but the playoffs.

The good from the Los Angeles Lakers’ win:

MVP!…MVP!…MVP!…Oops! Anthony Davis played well again, folks!

The staff of Lake Show Life is starting to run out of adjectives to describe this guy and the run he is having. He dropped a season-high for a half with 24 points. If he did miss, the shot trickled out. The work he put on Kristaps Porzingis and the rest of the Wizards’ frontline was the basketball version of manslaughter.

https://twitter.com/ClutchPointsApp/status/1599563929218420738

Then the man topped it in the second half!

He finished with 55 points, 17 rebounds and 3 blocks. Barring injury, AD’s run will go on for quite a while. Why? This is a part of a disciplined scheme to get him the ball in places where he can be dominant. He is officially the number one option early and often and this is why the Lakers have won eight out of the last ten games.

The AD era of the Los Angeles Lakers is here Lakers Nation! Hail to the new face of the franchise.

The huge run in the first quarter basically put this game away!

The Washington Wizards were actually up 15-10 in the first quarter before the Lake Show went on a 17-2 run to relatively put this game away. Daniel Gafford and Corey Kispert played well enough for the Wizards to keep this post-game report being put up at halftime, but when Bradley Beal left the game never to return, the game was never in doubt and the Lakers played like it!

Then there was that 13-2 run in the third quarter that looked much like the first quarter.

The bad from the Los Angeles Lakers’ win:

The last quarter… Straight Indiana Pacers style baby!

The Los Angeles Lakers were on a seven-quarter streak of 30 points or more scored. Let’s just say it stopped in the final quarter of this one. The Wizards cut the Lakers’ lead to single digits. It’s like the Lake Show started playing shootaround basketball. Then they let Kyle Kuzma get hot like that’s not a problem.

Then they gave AD the ball again. The difference between this game and earlier this week.

The story from the Los Angeles Lakers’ win:

No one in the NBA can stop the Los Angeles Lakers pick and roll if executed correctly!

Welcome to another episode of “How Darvin Ham is proving that Frank Vogel didn’t coach last year!” It’s a segment showing the incompetence of the former coach with the actions of the current one!

Think back to when Frank Vogel was coaching. He wanted Anthony Davis to attempt five 3 point shots a game. The way AD was shooting them, the Lakers were basically bailing out every opponent they faced and his impact was compromised.

Now Darvin Ham comes in and implements a tight pick-and-roll system that works on both sides of the floor. Now how does that work?

  • Thanks to Russell Westbrook buying into Ham’s plan (Vogel never had one and Russ knew it!) and coming off the bench, he looks to drive into the lane and kick the ball out to shooters. Hence the Lakers are improving. Russ had 15 assists. 
  • When LeBron drives hard, the opponent has to double-team to defend the rim. Then it opens up AD in the dunkers’ spot.

This offensive scheme is not fool’s gold. The Milwaukee Bucks have one of the top defenses in the NBA and they struggled mightily with the condensed pick-and-roll offense that LeBron and AD were running to perfection. Remember the Lakers had four turnovers overall and the trio of Russ, AD and LeBron had none of them. Darvin Ham is one of the best strategists in the NBA…NOW!

In the era of teams defending the 3-point shot with a high priority, this one offensive scheme alone will keep AD rolling in the scoring column and the Lakers beating teams they should beat.

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