Anthony Davis played all but two seconds in the fourth quarter of Team USA’s win over the Dominican Republic, converting a four point play in the process.
update: Davis is officially in for the 2012 Olympics
After sitting the first three quarters, Anthony Davis started the fourth on the floor for Team USA and stayed there almost throughout. The highlight of his night was obviously the three-pointer he hit while being fouled and then the free throw conversion for a four-point-play. Boom! He added a great rebound put back as well as a steal.
I got goosebumps.
That said, he bricked a step back J from the corner, appeared out of rhythm on the offensive end for a good chunk of the quarter, and worst of all– ran 15 feet deep into the crowd after being fouled on a post-steal layup. The Hornets future flashed before my eyes.
All in all Davis had a really solid first appearance for Team USA, scoring 9 points on 4 shots and adding the rebound I mentioned. He barely practiced with the Olympic team, never seeing any competitive action prior to being cut initially. He’s got a ways to go in terms of being on the same page as the rest of his teammates, but one thing is for sure– the guy has some skills.
At the bare minimum I expect that he’ll be a fantastic garbageman right off the bat. With some hard work, luck, and good coaching, the sky is the limit. One thing that I noticed is how every time the ball goes at the rim he’s so active in getting into position to do something if it doesn’t go in. Some guys just stand there and wait, but not Davis. His energy is awesome.
After the game…
- John Calipari said that the experience of playing in the Olympics and training with the best in the world would be worth two years of experience for Davis.
- “Davis is not a key person,” according to Coach K. “He played eight minutes tonight and was really good. But for us to be staying with Argentina and Brazil it’s going to be these guys (motioning to Andre Iguodala).”
48 responses to “Anthony Davis Plays Most of the Fourth Quarter in Team USA’s Win”
Love his energy and attitude. Can’t wait for the season to start. And ya, that run into the crowd scared the hell out of me.
I was so excited when he checked into the game, I could hardly control myself! Best thing about his performance is that there seemed to be no lingering affects from the ankle sprain.
Wish I could contribute, but that article is spot on. Definitely a work in progress, but I can work with averaging a point per minute.
I was ridiculously impressed. Think about what he did. Little to no practice with the NBA’s rock stars, and he steps up big. He arrived today. You could see his nerves on the bench from his body language. You could tell he was saying in his head “holy shizz and I really playing with Durant, Kobe, Lebron” etc. They’re all comfortable around one another, and this kid hasn’t played a single nba game.
He’s only going to improve for Olympics as he gets more comfortable.
Also, totally looks like he buffed up his upper body.
Fear the brow!!
Ps–can we draft the HS sophomore now??
How nice is it that AD is on the squad and Gordon is not…
A very petty thing to say. I suppose you’re also pleased with Blake Griffin getting injured to give AD the shot.
* browcountry
it shows you how big the NBA is when KD gives him a high 5 on the 3 and he’s just as tall as AD.
He looked a little sluggish toward the end.
CP and KD were the best players tonight.
Cp?? He barely played. AI was impressive.
Iverson played??? how did i miss that??? 2nd best player ever
Igoudala
I was wondering about that, any suspected reasons for CP3 playing less than AD? Just getting the young/inexperienced guys more time or what?
i know i was jk’n also AI should be reserved for Iverson in reverence.. perhaps use iggy instead? it doesn’t help that they both play for philly too
CP3 had a thumb injury he was dealing with, they stated at the begining that he would be getting limited minutes
I noticed that too, then hit the rewind and pause just to see if it was an illusion but nope, KD is just so rediculously tall for his abilities. Im pretty sure he looked taller than Blake at All Star Break as well.
That depends do OU have anyone whose great in mind. Also I wish I could’ve been or even seen it, but hopefully I’ll watch it ESPN when I get home.
Even I was impressed.
but was Da Throne???
No. Check HR.
It was a decent showing. But it wasn’t against quality competition and it didn’t answer many of the questions I have about him being anything but a really good player. Which is what I’ve been saying all along.
SNAP!! Missed it
and our dynasty begins!!
Did I see him playing a lot at the 5 even with Chandler on the court? (especially on the defensive end)
Right but I’m with Calipari and Monty Williams. . .we now have Anderson/Gordon/Rivers starting with Davis probably. His business should not be from 3 point land. Throw some bulk on the kid n give him an in defendable game from inside the paint and we have a championship in the future. He really should not be shooting from 3 for us, or ever, n this is primarily because lay ups are such a higher percentage. If 3s were worth 5 points, sure. . .but they aren’t lol.
U make no sense if he can knock it down why not?
there is a rebounding disadvantage with bigs taking 3s but if he can spot up he seems to be able to knock them down ala kevin love (i don’t think he will get to durant level but who knows) .. also ppl forget he was a guard and had that shot before became 6’11”
No I understand and don’t get me wrong, when wide open, go for it. . .I suppose it’s just our roster currently is shaping up to look like we have people already filling the 3 point role. Anderson lead the NBA, Rivers is poised to be a light skinned Iverson, and Eric Gordon has mean range. All in all, its an excellent problem to have, too many shooters.
Don’t look too much into his 3 pointer…. It was a great shot, but he was only 3/20 from that range at Kentucky and the line is closer in FIBA play.
That’s what we got Anderson for.
Yeah I agree with the comment that Anthony Davis looked like he got bigger. I believe it was Joe who said that Davis looked scrawny compared to the other USA players (I could very well be wrong) but he didn’t look to much smaller than them.
Do you think he gained some weight?
His arms look alot more muscular from college and almost as cut as the rest of the USA teams’, but its his core strength thats behind and that just comes from being a 19 year old teenager. Specialised Weight Training and Dieting will help but you cant speed up physical maturity. Thats why the NFL has a longer eligibility wait before players can declare for the draft out of college.
Good Post. Anybody expecting him to be as physically strong as Tyson Chandler right now is just ridiculous. Chandler weighed 105 lbs at 19 lol!
ESPN has a column on which team boast the big three of the future and guess wat NOLA is in der……^^,
He played very well. He had tons of pressure on him. All these guys have great chemistry an are guys he looked up to just a few years ago, and now he’s playing with them. What really was great wa how well he responded on such short notice.
The video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zCxCyUqimtM
AD is officially better than Blake Griffin at this point because all Blake can do is dunk..Just think how wide open the lane will be for our gaurds if the other teams 5 have to account for AD shootin the 3..
Hope Rivers does well sunday night..
Right after he drilled that 3 and fell, 6 or so of his teammates, perennial All-Stars and possible future Hall of Famers, came to help him up and congratulate him. I feel bad for Griffin and the Clippers (a day or two after the max extension becomes official?? Really??), but being able to get a preview of our future star in a USA jersey is just incredible. This offseason (sans Gordongate) just gets better and better
AD is a great addition to the Olympic team. This was a killer debut. Now that it is official, I find it interesting that the first time we will see AD on the floor with Chief will be as his opponent. Anyhow, not hard to see the greatness here. I can’t wait for next season!
Unfortunately I was unable to watch the game but who were the other guys on the court with him?
Buncha scrubs! One guys looked familiar, but I don’t remember his name.
Solid debut. If you extrapolate his performance out over 48 minutes (like those scouts do, they’re hilarious!!!) he would have scored 36 and grabbed 4 rebs. Doesn’t make much sense to do so. However, if his first game would have been in summer league, it may have been a 20-10-5 show. The 5 being blocks, that is.
Don’t you love it?
I just went to ESPN/nba this morning and I see Lebron and Durant helping Davis get off the floor! Titled “Looking Golden?”
I hope they will make it official soon and Davis will go to the Olympics.
I bet the photo was taken after Davis made his 3-pointer and got fouled.
One detail about the photo: Everybody smiles but Kobe Bryant. Another reason to hate him if you are on the same boat with me. 🙂
Davis will get a great experience out there. I wish Pop was still an assistant coach. But, that’s OK. Coach K, D’Antoni, McMillan! He will learn a lot from those guys, and will report to our training camp with an even enhanced winning mentality!!!
I’ll give a thumbs up for any Kobe hate.
I was so excited when I saw he was checking in. When he hit that three and got fouled, I was pretty pumped! I don’t expect to see him shooting threes all day, but since he was a guard before his growth they can be hit. It’s a weapon that likely wouldn’t be in effect too often but can be a good help.
Now to watch the Hornets Sunday!
His shooting stroke on that 3 was incredibly pure for his size.
First impression for me was that he looked big. He could still stand to bulk up, but it shows that he’s working. He definitely looked awkward out there, but it’s a good sign that he played well with little to no practice. I look forward to this getting the jitters out of his system. when they showed the bench, everybody was laughing and talking except Davis. Definitely looked like the new kid. Can’t really blame the guy, though. This should help his psyche tremendously as he learns from some of best how to have fun while working hard. A little more gold would go nicely with his creole blue! U-S-A! U-S-A!
What did some of you Expect from the Guy..He played 9min..He didnt wanna Step on anybody Toes and he Played Excellent..Give him
20min and We’ll see alot More..We’re gonna be So good this year..And Just to let y’all know..Darius Miller is a Baller..We’re set at SF for the Next 10yrs
I also believe Darrius Miller can contribute possibly start for us at the 3..Dude has got a wet jumper…