Lakers analyst weighs in on Anthony Davis' increased 3-point shooting volume

LA Lakers coach JJ Redick wants Anthony Davis to shoot more 3-point shots this season. Lakers analyst Tim of Basketball Index, more famously known as Cranjis McBasketball, weighed in on Davis' increased output from beyond the arc in the preseason.

Speaking to Lakers insider Jovan Buha of The Athletic on "Buha's Block" podcast on Monday, Cranjis was asked about how AD's attempts from 3 will affect the team this season. Cranjis hopes that Davis would shoot at a good percentage in the regular season.

"I try not to get too excited about the little glimpses we might see here or there," Cranjis said.

"This happening now makes me blindly hope that they're seeing him put up awesome shooting behind the scenes on much higher volume that we can't see."

Cranjis added that if Davis doesn't shoot the ball well there 20 games into the season, he could go back to dominating the paint rather than shooting 3-pointers:

"As long as he's shooting around 30% from three, I'm not going to be the most comfortable with it. This is someone, I think should be dominating the rim all things equal.

"I'd rather just throw him the ball in the post and let him go to work than have them pick and pop or do different things. And from a gravity standpoint, if we talk about how it bends the defense, it's really going to take a lot of volume and success to move defenses off."

Anthony Davis averaged 4.3 attempts from 3 in preseason, but the LA Lakers want him to shoot more in the regular season. Davis is not a great 3-point shooter although he's capable of getting hot before cooling back down and struggling.

AD's best shooting percentage from 3 as a Laker was 33.0% during the championship season in 2020, but he has shot 26.0%, 18.6%, 25.7% and 27.1% in the past four years.

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Anthony Davis wants to dominate every game this season

Anthony Davis wants to dominate every game this season. (Photo: IMAGN)

Anthony Davis is coming off a career-high 76 games played last season, averaging 24.7 points, 12.6 rebounds, 3.5 assists, 1.2 steals and 2.3 blocks. He was the LA Lakers' best player, ahead of LeBron James, which should be the case again this season.

In an interview with ESPN's Dave McMenamin after Monday's practice, Davis plans to dominate for the Lakers in every game, if possible.

"Being aggressive every time down the floor, being dominant every game," Davis said, according to Lakers News.

"Doing my job, doing my part and helping this team do what we gotta do. Taking on a matchup defensively, taking on a role offensively, being a leader of this team, carrying us in games, playoffs, whatever it takes."

The Lakers begin the new season at home on Opening Night on Tuesday when they welcome the Minnesota Timberwolves.