When the Los Angeles Lakers won the NBA championship during the 2019-20 season, they did so with Anthony Davis starting at power forward and splitting his time between the 4 and 5 spots.
But this past season, he played exclusively at the center position, and although the Lakers reached the Western Conference finals with him playing outstanding ball, some still believe he’d be better off moving back to the starting 4 spot.
Earlier this month, the team picked up Jaxson Hayes, a 6-foot-11 center who can block shots, rebound and finish strongly at the rim. His profile seems similar to that of JaVale McGee, who started at the 5 the year L.A. won it all.
While on “The Lowe Post” podcast, ESPN’s Dave McMenamin said that, in his opinion, it wouldn’t shock him if the Lakers at least tried starting Hayes at the 5 and Davis at the 4 this season (h/t Silver Screen and Roll).
“It would not shock me if we saw Jaxson Hayes as a starting center to open up the season to see how that looks. But that doesn’t mean that you’re not going to see Anthony Davis playing center in the fourth quarter. That’s winning time.”
Playing Davis at the 4 alongside a rim-protecting 5 would allow him to play like a free safety on defense and be more of a disruptor or switch onto an opposing team’s main offensive threat. Doing so could make the Lakers’ defense, which was already strong late last season, even better.
