Hoops Habit
Fansided

NBA: 10 Opening Week Overreactions That Might Be Legitimate

By Gerald Bourguet

Oct 28, 2016; Oklahoma City, OK, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder guard Russell Westbrook (0) reacts after defeating the Phoenix Suns 113-110 in overtime at Chesapeake Energy Arena. Mandatory Credit: Mark D. Smith-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 28, 2016; Oklahoma City, OK, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder guard Russell Westbrook (0) reacts after defeating the Phoenix Suns 113-110 in overtime at Chesapeake Energy Arena. Mandatory Credit: Mark D. Smith-USA TODAY Sports /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
8 of 11
Next
NBA
Nov 1, 2016; New Orleans, LA, USA; New Orleans Pelicans forward Anthony Davis (23) is fouled by Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo (34) on an attempted dunk during the third quarter of a game at the Smoothie King Center. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports /

4. Anthony Davis Leads The League In Scoring

Poor Anthony Davis. In his first four games, just take a look at the absurd stat lines he’s posted:

  • 50 points, 15 rebounds, 5 assists, 5 steals, 4 blocks, 17-34 FG, 16-17 FT
  • 45 points, 17 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals, 2 blocks, 17-31 FG, 10-14 FT
  • 18 points, 5 rebounds, 3 blocks, 6-15 FG, 6-8 FT
  • 35 points, 15 rebounds, 3 steals, 3 blocks, 2 assists, 9-21 FG, 17-18 FT

I mean…holy s**t, you guys.

Unfortunately, all of those monster stat lines have resulted in exactly zero wins for the New Orleans Pelicans, who are still missing Jrue Holiday and Tyreke Evans during their 0-4 start.

That’s tied for the worst record in the NBA so far, but without any other quality players to look for on offense, the Brow has reminded people why it was reasonable to expect a bounce-back year after a somewhat underwhelming 2015-16 campaign.

So far, Russell Westbrook is leading the league in scoring at 38.7 points per game. But if not for Davis’ 18-point performance against the mighty Spurs, the Brow’s 37.0 points per game would be a league-best.

Westbrook’s scoring numbers should come down as his stat line skews more toward being a triple-double machine, which means Davis has as good a chance any anyone to lead the league in scoring.

His team has no other options, they need him to produce, and at age 23, Davis is starting to tap into his sky-high potential. He’ll have competition from Westbrook, Damian Lillard, Stephen Curry, Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving, but I’d hedge my bets on the Brow in this category.