SAN ANTONIO — Anthony Davis sat in front of his corner locker, his feet in an ice bucket and his left eye bloodshot.
As he answered questions in front of a circle of reporters, D’Angelo Russell walked by and interrupted the news conference.
“‘Ooter,” Russell yelled. “Big ‘ooter. The ‘ooter’s back.”
Davis smiled, laughed and shook his head.
“Real ‘ooter,” he yelled back to Russell.
“‘Ooter” has become a buzzword around the Lakers’ locker room. Davis coined it as shorthand for “shooter.” He, and his teammates, started referring to himself as an “‘ooter” in the preseason after he made four 3s in the Lakers’ preseason win in Phoenix.
When Russell tweeted “SHOOOOOOOOOOTERRRRRRR” after Davis made a clutch 3-pointer in the Lakers’ win over the Sacramento Kings early in the season, Davis tweeted for the first time in two years, replying, “Real life ooter!!!!!!”
Since returning from his one-game absence because of plantar fasciitis, Davis has lived up to that billing, making two 3-pointers in four straight games. In the opening game of the NBA Cup pool play, Davis scored a season-high 40 points for the Lakers, including drilling two pivotal 3-pointers in the fourth quarter to keep Los Angeles in control. The Lakers beat the San Antonio Spurs 120-115 in San Antonio on Friday, improving to 8-4 overall and 8-0 in the NBA Cup over the past two seasons.
With 15 points, 16 boards and 12 assists, LeBron James posted his fourth straight triple-double, a personal best streak which has come, inexplicably, in Year 22. But it was Davis who once again carried the Lakers, scoring a season-high 26 points in the first half, and battling Victor Wembanyama as the Lakers were undermanned in the frontcourt without Rui Hachimura (a late scratch), Jaxson Hayes, Jarred Vanderbilt and Christian Wood. Davis has scored 30-plus points in seven of the 11 games he’s played in, despite battling a foot injury and an eye he can barely open.
“I told him after the game, I said ‘I know you’re doing this now on a nightly basis. I’m not taking it for granted,’” coach JJ Redick said. “This is, it’s fun to coach. It’s fun to watch.”
Davis’ 3-point shooting has been a preseason storyline for years. Former coaches Frank Vogel and Darvin Ham wanted Davis to attempt more 3s, hoping he could replicate the golden touch he displayed for much of the 2019-20 season. Davis has yet to recapture that magic. He’s shot under 30 percent on 3s in the four seasons since the title. He’s also progressively attempted fewer 3s per game.
Until this season that is.
Davis is shooting 41.7 percent on 2.2 attempts per game. The percentage is, obviously, great. Davis’ shot looks the best it has since 2020. His per-game volume is much less than what Redick initially wanted him to attempt entering the season, but Davis has been so efficient and timely with his 3s that it’s become an unexpected weapon for the Lakers.
“You can get to the rim kind of whenever,” Reaves said. “Big men’s tendencies when guards or whoever’s driving, he has to go contest shots. So, when he’s shooting it like that, they kind of have to second-guess themselves. If they do go, you got to wide-open 3. If they don’t go, you’re create in the paint. So, it’s big for our team.”
Davis chalks up his recent success to playing freer offensively and not thinking as much about his shot when he’s open.
“Just letting it fly,” Davis said. “No hesitation. Not thinking about it. Very confident. And it’s been falling for me.”
Davis has carried a massive workload this season. He’s averaging a career-high 31.1 points per game and the second-highest usage percentage of his career (31.8 percent). The Lakers are involving him on nearly every offensive action when he’s on the floor. Defensively, his responsibility remains as large as ever, especially with the Lakers’ best perimeter, Vanderbilt, still out.
It’s difficult to ask more of him. But his shooting and the Lakers’ subsequent spacing is a game-changer, as it can bend even the best defenses until they break. Davis is a matchup nightmare for most big men — too big and strong for smaller bigs, and too athletic and skilled for the plodders. In recent seasons, the primary way to slow him down has been to play off of him and challenge him to make jumpers. But if Davis is going to make 3s, or at least present the threat, there aren’t many ways to slow him down outside of just hoping he misses.
Of course, Davis has flashed his shooting progress before. Perhaps this doesn’t sustain and he regresses. He shot 16.7 percentage through the first seven games, making just two of 12 attempts. His current figure (41.7 percent) will almost certainly decrease by at least a few percentage points eventually.
But perhaps he’s finally turned a corner, at least in mentality. He’s never going to be a high-volume 3-point shooter the way his previous coaches wanted. But he needs to embrace his inner ‘ooter, and he’s finally doing it.
(Photo of Anthony Davis and Victor Wembanyama: Ronald Cortes / Getty Images)
