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Anthony Davis Ed Szczepanski-USA TODAY Sports

Lakers' lack of rebounding shows why Anthony Davis prefers to play next to a center

By Adam Taylor | Last updated 3/15/24

The Los Angeles Lakers are 22nd in the NBA for rebounds per game, securing 42.5 per game. When they won a championship in 2020, Anthony Davis played forward, and Dwight Howard manned the middle of the court.

When speaking to the media following the Lakers' loss to the Sacramento Kings on Thursday, Davis cited his team's rebounding issues as a primary reason for the loss.

"We had a tough shooting night, the turnovers kind of hurt us a bit, offensive rebounding," Davis said. "Anytime they got a rebound, it resulted in a 3 most of the time. It’s tough, you know they’re a good team and when we give them second-chance points or turn the ball over and give them easy points in transition, it just makes it a lot harder...When you’re down, you don’t want to give team like this any more extra points… When we give up extra points off of offensive rebounds and turnovers, it’s a lot tougher to beat them.”

"We just wanted to come out with a team effort, knowing where we're at in the standings and how important this game was." AD (27 PTS, 23 REB, 7 STL & 3 BLK) on what led to his career night against Minnesota. pic.twitter.com/3lob8PNkgB
— Spectrum SportsNet (@SpectrumSN) March 11, 2024

Davis has previously admitted that he prefers to play as a forward. He's also been most successful when another big body is next to him in the middle of the floor. Moving away from being a center helps him avoid the constant big blows and gives him opportunities to block shots when rotating over.

"I think I was playing a four then," Davis said in a 2022 news conference. "JaVale was playing the five and Dwight was playing the five. So guarding the perimeter, knowing I got them guys behind me, or weak side helps getting blocks from the weak side... My role has just changed a little bit as far as positions. In '19-'20 I was a roamer where I can be on whoever the four is and roam around and help protect everyone. It's tough for me to do that when I'm going to the five.

Darvin Ham's team has struggled to find an identity this season. Part of that is due to their inability to win their battles on the glass. Davis is a capable center. He's an exceptional forward. It makes sense to try and slot him next to a big man if that's what it takes to get the best out of him. After all, it's that formula that helped the Lakers win their last championship.

Until Ham puts his star big in a position to be the best version of himself, the Lakers will continue to struggle. Davis is supposed to be the future of the Lakers organization. Yet, he's continually miscast in a role that he's been vocal about not wanting to frequently play. With the postseason right around the corner, Ham may need to make yet another change to his rotation. Otherwise, the Lakers' struggles on the glass could cost them a chance at competing for a championship.

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