The Washington Wizards are giving Anthony Davis what he says he wants, but it may not be the setup that helps them most.
Washington has built a roster that points Davis toward the four, with another big man alongside him in most lineups. That matches his preference.
It does not necessarily match the way he’s been most effective. In today’s NBA, putting two non-shooters on the floor is a tough way to survive, let alone win.
Davis says he’s been at his best with another big next to him, and he made that case on the Numbers on the Board podcast.
“For me, I feel like I’ve been most successful in my career when I’ve had another big.”
The problem for Washington is that the version of Davis people remember from the 2020 title run was tied to a very specific shooting burst. During the bubble playoffs, he launched 60 3-pointers in 21 games and hit 38.3 percent of them.
Yes, he played with JaVale McGee or Dwight Howard. No, that did not mean the Lakers were running two non-shooters at once, because Davis was stretching the floor himself.
That kind of perimeter production has not held up. Since the bubble, Davis has shot 25.8 percent on 512 3-point attempts in the regular season, and the volume has dropped because the shots have not gone in often enough.
Davis also pushed back on the Lakers’ decision to use him at center later in the same podcast, saying:
“I’ve always played at like 250-255, and that year I had gotten to 265. I didn’t like it.
I was actually probably like 268. I was like I can’t play like this, so I tried to cut during the season, but when you try to do that while you’re playing is tough.
That when I went was like, I want another big, but it just didn’t happen. But now, you guys will see.
Put me alongside another big, and it is a different ballgame for me.”
What gets lost there is that the Lakers had already seen the downside of playing Davis at the four. They were eliminated in the first round of the 2021 playoffs with him in that role, and the arrival of Russell Westbrook the following offseason only made the spacing picture worse.
When Davis played mostly at the five in the two postseasons after that, Los Angeles reached the conference finals in 2023 and then fell in the first round in 2024. Both exits came against Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets. Jokic was a brutal matchup, but Davis still had more success overall as the center.
That is the lesson Los Angeles learned the hard way: spacing matters, and finding a stretch five is hard and expensive. So the Lakers solved the issue by moving Davis to center.
Washington is choosing the opposite path. The Wizards traded for Deandre Ayton and already have Alex Sarr, so Davis will get the chance to play the four. They are trying to accelerate their rebuild and see if this setup can help them move toward the playoffs.
But the floor could get crowded fast. Every champion since the San Antonio Spurs in 2014 has had at least four shooters in the starting lineup, and if Davis is going to stay at the four, he has to make more 3s and take them more often. Washington is not chasing a title right now, but a cramped floor would still be a problem for an offense trying to get unstuck.
There is also the contract side. Davis is in the final guaranteed season of his deal and has not yet played for the Wizards.
He is healthy to begin the year and entering the season with a new contract on the line. If a deal does not get done until after the season, the trade talk figures to follow.
Washington is hoping that by putting him where he wants to play, it can keep him around.
Still, the roster math is what it is. The Wizards may not have enough shooting to keep the lane open, which could make life harder for number one overall draft pick AJ Dybantsa when he tries to score inside. Trae Young is also a worse shooter than his reputation suggests, adding another layer to the spacing issue.
Davis wants another big next to him. The Lakers already found out that his best spot is the five. Washington is about to learn the same thing.
In Other News...
Anthony Davis Framed This Wizards Season As A Personal Reckoning
Anthony Davis is treating this season in Washington as more than a fresh start. On a podcast, he talked about his determination to prove doubters wrong with the Wizards, framing the year as a personal reckoning after a stretch in which questions have followed him. He also pointed to the people around him as reasons for optimism, noting the upside of sharing the floor with Trae Young and rookie AJ Dybantsa.
There is real meaning attached to how this begins. Contract extension talks between Davis and the Wizards have been put on hold, which makes the opening stretch of the season even more important for both sides. If Washington is going to convince him, and if Davis is going to strengthen his own case, the early months could carry a weight that goes well beyond the standings. [Read more 🡒]