James says Davis is the face of the Lakers

The team is looking to build from the run to the Western Conference finals last season. Two decades into his NBA career, with a trophy rack running out of space due to all of his accomplishments, LeBron James appears ready to pass the torch to teammate Anthony Davis as leader of the Los Angeles Lakers.

“He’s the face (of the franchise),” James told ESPN during the Lakers’ annual media day on Monday. “If you look at all these numbers (of retirees) surrounding these facilities, all the greats that have come here and AD is one of them.” Before the offseason, James and Davis’ contracts were concurrent, and both players had the option in recent years of deals to remain in Los Angeles through the 2024-25 season.

However, Davis extended his timeline beyond James’s in August by signing a three-year, $186 million max extension that will keep him in the purple and gold through 2028. At the time of the deal, it was the extension more lucrative. one year contract. . in league history, averaging $62 million per season.

“It’s great to see him get that extension to be a part of his franchise for years and years and years. And so far it has been a pleasure to play alongside him and I hope we can do great things.” James publicly pushed for Los Angeles to acquire Davis almost as soon as the four-time MVP joined the Lakers. The two fit together perfectly in their first season after the Lakers acquired Davis in a 2019 trade with the New Orleans Pelicans. They capped off their first season with a championship in the NBA bubble in Orlando, Florida, in 2020. The same level of success did not follow, as Los Angeles lost in the first round in 2021 and failed to qualify for the 2022 postseason due to injuries. . . Davis and others took their toll.

But Davis and the Lakers enjoyed a resurgence toward the Western Conference finals in the spring, and the eight-time All-Star posted career highs in field goal percentage (56.3) and rebounds (12.5), plus registering 25.9 points and 2.0 blocks per game. . game. game.

However, when asked directly by a reporter if his new contract makes him feel like he is now on his team, Davis did not yield to questions.

“I think this is the Lakers team and I play for the Lakers,” Davis said firmly.

Davis’ importance to the team cannot be minimized, whether he comes with the unofficial title as the face of the franchise or not, and he acknowledged that. “I think I’m going to be the second-oldest guy here now, so the guys depend on me a lot,” Davis, 30, said. “I feel like it’s my responsibility to be one of the leaders of the team alongside Bron. My job is to help those guys and help the young people and continually be with them. Let them know what we need and what we must improve and give them advice so that we are all together and united to be able to compete for a championship.”

Davis, who missed 26 games last season due to a foot injury, said his “body feels good” heading into training camp and maintains the same goal he had last season of staying on the court as much as possible. may be possible. it can be possible. it can be possible.

“My goal every year is to play 82 games,” Davis said. “And I didn’t do anything different this summer. I took some time off. I’m back in the lab and ready to go. Nothing has changed. Every year you want to go out in every game and give your team a chance to win. “Especially with my role, I know he’s a big part of this team and being on the court definitely helps us.”