Anthony Davis Season Props: Lakers New Star Tabbed for 28.5 PPG, 10.5 RPG

• Over his seven-year career, Anthony Davis has averaged 23.7 points per game, 10.5 rebounds and 2.4 blocks
• The Lakers’ newest superstar has career highs of 28.1 points, 12 rebounds and 2.9 blocks
• Playing alongside LeBron, will he be able to replicate the production?

Be careful what you wish for. With Anthony Davis finally set to play under the bright lights of the Staples Center, the latest Los Angeles Lakers superstar is about to experience the kind of pressure that he can only have imagined toiling away in New Orleans with the Pelicans.

Taking the court alongside LeBron James this season, Davis will be expected to lead the Lakers out of the wilderness and back to the playoffs’ promised land. And as if that wasn’t enough, the Lakers faithful will be demanding a championship to boot, such is the weight of expectation for those wearing purple and gold.

To do so, Davis will likely have to deliver above and beyond the scale of the majority of his statistical career averages.

Anthony Davis 2019-20 Season Props

*Odds taken on 10/18/19

Which Version of AD Will the Lakers Get?

While Davis had a multitude of impressive games during his seven years in New Orleans, a combination of injuries – only twice has he played more than 68 regular season games – and a revolving cast of teammates hampered his ability to  become the statistical monster that his size and skills would seem to indicate.

However, on the two occasions Davis took the Pelicans to the playoffs, he flat out dominated, blowing by his career regular-season averages with 30.5 points, 12.7 rebounds and 2.5 blocks per game.

Anthony Davis erupts for an #NBAPlayoffs career-high 47 PTS, 11 REB, 3 BLK to propel the @PelicansNBA to the 2nd round! #DoItBigger

(AD's 47 are the most points scored in a series-clinching win since Kobe Bryant (48) in 2001). pic.twitter.com/cgy3J47g9i

— NBA (@NBA) April 22, 2018

If a motivated Davis can deliver these kinds of performance on a nightly basis in Los Angeles, he has a good chance to deliver everything that Lakers fans are expecting.

Sharing the Limelight

LeBron James is obviously no stranger to sharing the court with another superstar or two. In Miami, he famously teamed with Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh as the Heat went to four consecutive NBA Finals.

However, while Wade had previously led Miami to the NBA title in 2006, he happily deferred to James when No. 23 arrived in 2010, taking something of a back seat.

As a result, Wade’s points-per-game average dropped every single year during James’s tie in Miami, falling from 26.6 PPG the year before James arrived to 19.0 PPG in the final year of their partnership.

"I got a lot of work to do." ?@AntDavis23 on @KingJames wanting to make him the focal point of the offense this season. (via @SpectrumSN) #NBAMediaDay pic.twitter.com/BjdlYUg8z1

— NBA TV (@NBATV) September 27, 2019

Can James do the same with Davis? According to Davis, James has said that he wants the offense to run through the newcomer, allowing the soon-to-be 35-year-old James to conserve his energy for  the playoffs. But it remains to be seen if James is really willing to put this into practice.

Building Blocks

Oddsmakers have the over/under on Davis’s blocks this season pegged at 2.5 per game. Three times in seven seasons he has gone above this number, and each time he did he led the league in blocks.

Anthony Davis had a block party on his birthday. pic.twitter.com/PP7tYWfufe

— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) March 12, 2018

Given his range and positional sense, it seems a decent bet that he will return to his league-leading ways, providing he is injury free for much of the season. After all, blocking shots doesn’t require any sharing of the ball, and for a guy desperate to show that he was worth the wait after his protracted departure from New Orleans, showing sustained effort on the defensive end should be a given.

Pick: Over 2.5 (-120)

Making His Points

With only one ball to go around and a multitude of egos, getting upwards of 28.5 points per game might be a challenge for Davis this season. Only twice in his career has he averaged at least 28 points per game, and the highest of these was the 28.1 he averaged in 2017-18, when he was a finalist for the NBA MVP award.

Anthony Davis made it a debut to remember with 22 points and 10 boards in only one half of action. #LakeShow

(?: @SpectrumSN & TNT) pic.twitter.com/zdF8u2mixZ

— Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) October 6, 2019

While LeBron has stated that he wants much of the offense to go through Davis, it’s one thing to say it and another thing to show it. When the games start for real next week, it remains to be seen whether LeBron is willing to defer to his younger teammate.

Pick: Under 28.5 (-120)

Big on the Boards

With the over/under on rebounds per game is set at 10.5, it sits exactly in line with Davis’s career average in this department. However, in each of the last three seasons he has registered an average of 11.0 rebounds or more, so he is certainly trending upwards in this department.

When Anthony Davis wants a rebound, he gets one. pic.twitter.com/zH3C8RiHTk

— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) January 3, 2019

And again, for someone hell bent on showing that the Lakers were right to sacrifice much of their youth and future to acquire him, putting forth the effort to pull down rebounds seems like a sure thing.

Pick: Over 10.5 (-120)