LeBron and AD: The Smash Brothers!

If Steph Curry and Klay Thompson are the Splash Brothers, then LeBron James and Anthony Davis are destined to become the Smash Brothers!

Anthony Davis has never played with a player as great as LeBron James and LeBron James has never played with a player as great as Anthony Davis. Together, the Lakers’ superstar duo is destined to be the Smash Brothers!

The Lakers may still be struggling to find themselves on offense and their shooters may still be mostly firing up blanks but the one thing that’s clearly gotten everybody’s attention after just four games is their superstar duo. Nobody was certain before the season started just how good LeBron James and Anthony Davis could be playing together because neither of them had ever been paired with a teammate who could rival their own potential.

But just four games into the season, there’s little doubt LeBron James and Anthony Davis are going to be something special and have the potential to become one of the greatest dynamic duos to ever play together in the NBA. Frankly, I cannot remember ever seeing two superstars who possess the unicorn physical talent and positionless versatile athleticism of James and Davis playing together on the same team in the history of the league.

They each have the bully ball ability to physically take over a game and dominate like men playing with boys. If Curry and Thompson are the Splash Brothers, then James and Davis should be the Smash Brothers. Their ability to bulldoze and intimidate opponents with their relentless physical superiority is as demoralizing as Curry and Thompson’s ability to quash hope and crush optimism with a flurry of unstoppable threes.

Through the first four games of the season, Anthony Davis is averaging 28.8 points, 12.5 rebounds, 3.0 assists, 3.0 blocks, and 1.0 steals for a PER of 34.64 while LeBron James is averaging 23.3 points, 6.3 rebounds, 9.5 assists, 0.8 blocks, and 1.6 steals for a PER of 27.80. Combined, the Lakers’ superstar duo of James and Davis are averaging 52.1 points, 18.8 rebounds, 12.5 assists, 3.8 blocks, and 2.6 steals for a PER of 62.44.

Most important for the Lakers is that James and Davis’ exploits have been at both ends of the court. The Lakers’ team offensive rating of 107.9 is the tenth best in the league and their defensive rating of 96.8 is fourth best. Individually, the Lakers’ dynamic duo have both been leading the charge. Davis has an offensive rating of 104.6 and a defensive rating of 93.7 while James has an offensive rating of 110.5 and a defensive rating of 99.6.

After a disappointing season opening loss to the Clippers, the Lakers’ have picked up the pace and steadily shown signs of becoming a juggernaut of a team with three straight second half explosions to take over close games. Last night, they went on a 22–0 streak to end the third quarter led by Anthony Davis’ 40-point, 20-rebound virtuoso performance in just three quarters as a rabid Staples Center crowd showered him with MVP chants.

While it’s still early, the Lakers are looking like a legitimate championship contender with an elite defense and bruising offense led by the Smash Brothers LeBron James and Anthony Davis. With Kyle Kuzma and Rajon Rondo coming back from injury and what looks like a relatively easy schedule over the next month, the Lakers have an opportunity to rack up some wins and put themselves in position to lead the Western Conference.

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