Anthony Davis says Lakers need to stay ‘even-keeled’ after 0-3 start to season

Lakers big man Anthony Davis has urged his team to stay ‘even-keeled’ after their winless start as the team faces a difficult test vs. the Nuggets on Wednesday night.

Davis and the Lakers have opened their season with losses vs. the Warriors, Clippers and Blazers, with the team’s offense struggling to click and the team’s depth looking worryingly thin.

But the eight-time All-Star preached the importance of staying composed after Tuesday’s practice.

Anthony Davis has urged his team to stay composed amid a tough start to the season for LA

‘Obviously, there’s some sense of urgency. You don’t want to dig yourself too big of a hole,’ he said. 

‘But we’ve got to stay even-keeled. We can’t get rattled or flustered and things like that. Just like if we win 12 in a row. We don’t want to get too high.’

Los Angeles’ slow start comes largely due to the team’s offensive struggles, as their 97.2 points per 100 possessions marks the team as the NBA’s worst offensive unit thus far.

More encouragingly, the team is second in defensive rating. 

LeBron James has been his usual impressive self this season while Russell Westbrook has struggled mightily from the field

Nonetheless, it looks like it will be an uphill battle for this current Lakers roster to significantly turn things around on offense.

Russell Westbrook’s recent struggles have carried over to this season, as he’s shot just 28.9 percent from the field thus far, while only four players on the entire team (Westbrook, Davis, LeBron James and Lonnie Walker IV) average more than five points per game.

And outside of the struggling 34-year-old Westbrook, the Lakers have placed trust in a host of unproven players to fill out their rotation.

Austin Reaves, Matt Ryan and Troy Brown Jr. are all playing at least 15 minutes per game respectively, though Reaves and Ryan both went undrafted and Brown Jr. has averaged just 6.4 points per game over his career.

The team’s best bet of bench scoring may come from Kendrick Nunn, who’s currently averaging just 4.3 points per game but scored 15 points per game over his first two seasons in the league for the Heat.

The Lakers will hope Nunn returns to that form as he continues to work his way back from the knee injury that cost him all of last season.  

Los Angeles will visit the Nuggets on Wednesday in a bid to avoid an 0-4 start.

‘We think all this “adversity” is going to be good for us,’ Davis said. 

‘We’re glad it’s happening in October and not March or April. But we’ll make shots, continue to defend how we’re defending and try to go in [Wednesday] and Friday and get a win.’