A perfect start to the season for the Los Angeles Lakers of LeBron James and Anthony Davis, who will finish a short four-game road trip this Wednesday in New Orleans. If LeBron has been monstrous since the start of the season, he won’t be the main subject of the night. All eyes will indeed be on AD’s return to his old house. And the least we can say is that the latter apprehends this match, he who started on bad terms this summer with the franchise of Louisiana.
The Lakers therefore stop today in the South of the States, in New Orleans more precisely, the former birthplace of Anthony Davis. “Nervous”, the former interior of the Pelicans comes for the first time in his career to the Smoothie King Center as a visitor, and the latter will appear there with a small ball on the belly. No wonder how things ended, with this transfer request at the end of January which caused a nice mess in the months that followed, and then this trade in the Lakers during the summer. However, he remains attached to the franchise where he made his debut, as Shams Charania reports from The Athletic :
“This is the game of the year for me. New Orleans is part of me. “
This return is the perfect opportunity to return to its various feats of arms and its history which links it with New Orleans. It all started in 2012. The former resident of Kentucky, where he had been elected MOP of the Final Four, is the most anticipated player of this vintage. Logically the first choice, he therefore joined Louisiana and the New Orleans Hornets at the time. Despite 13.5 points, 8.2 rebounds and 1.8 against average in his first season, he was not elected Rookie of the Year, because of a certain leader evolving on the side of Oregon. However, it remains considered one of the future dominant interiors of the League. The weakness of his team allows him to shine, as evidenced by his performance in the middle of March 2014 against Boston. 40 points and 21 rebounds, personal records beaten and a place won in the hearts of fans of the franchise. That year, he won his first selection at the All-Star Game, which he will never miss until today. But if he asserts himself as one of the best interiors on both sides of the field, his team is struggling to find the way to the Playoffs.
Au total, AD has tasted postseason only twice with the Pelicans. A first in 2015 against the Warriors, with a first sweep for Unibrow. Learning shall we say. He returned three years later in 2018, this time more dominant than ever. These are the Portland Blazers who stand in his way. The result is final. A resounding sweep thanks in particular to its 33 points, 11.8 rebounds and 2.8 blocks on average. Under his leadership and also with the help of Jrue Holiday, they humiliate Damian Lillard and his gang to give themselves the right to face the Warriors again. New confrontation therefore, and new defeat against the residents of Oakland Bay. 4-1 defeat despite AD’s very honorable performances. Aware that it will be difficult to win at NOLA after a mixed start to the 2018-19 season, he will request his transfer. He will finally have to wait for summer to succeed. The single eyebrow will be traded against Brandon Ingram, Lonzo Ball, Josh Hart and the first three rounds of Draft to join LeBron in the City of Angels. Since then, they have been driving west and AD is finally a member of a team with real chances of title at the end of the season.
If Anthony Davis spent his best hours at NOLA, where he has chained extraordinary individual performances over the years, the end is probably still in the throat of the entire franchise. He returns tonight in the shoes of the enemy, and he should not expect a warm welcome. That said, fans of the Pels, never forget that for seven seasons, AD brightened your gloomy evenings and allowed your team to rediscover the scent of victory in the Playoffs. Come on, meet at 3:30 am for the return of the best player in the history of the Pelicans.
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