Los Angeles Lakers superstar big man Anthony Davis is a well-known superfan of the Green Bay Packers and their star quarterback Aaron Rodgers. This despite being from Chicago, home of the Packers’ biggest rival, the Bears. Despite that, Davis is a diehard fan, regularly mentioning their results as putting him in a good or bad mood prior to games at certain times.
To kick off the Lakers’ six-game road trip, the team was in Milwaukee to face the Bucks, and as is often the case, some Packers players made the drive down to be there in person as Davis and Giannis Antetokounmpo went blow-for-blow. Davis came out on top with 44 points, 10 rebounds, and three blocks while also getting his team the win, and a conversation with Rodgers before the game apparently motivated him even more.
After the win, Davis said that Rodgers told him before the game to score 30 points, but afterward joked that he didn’t tell him to drop 40, via Spectrum SportsNet:
“Absolutely. Absolutely. You guys know how I feel about the Pack and him. So seeing him before the game he was like, ‘AD man, I need 30 tonight,’ and I just saw him and he said ‘I only said 30, not 40.’ It’s always good for him to come out and watch the Lakers play, watch me play. He’s a fan just how I’m a fan of his and my guy Randall [Cobb] was here too so it was good to see some Pack in the house and get a win for them.”
Whatever motivation Davis has been receiving recently, the Lakers would be more than happy for it to continue, as Davis has been on another level recently. This was his ninth consecutive game with at least 24 points and 10 rebounds, with him also having at least three blocks in seven of those contests.
The win over the Bucks was absolutely the best and most impressive Lakers victory this season, and Davis out-dueling a player in Giannis, whom many consider the best player in the NBA today, sends a message to the rest of the league. But doing so in front of Rodgers and other Packers players simply made everything that much better for Davis.
Lakers coach Darvin Ham praises Anthony Davis’ relentlessness vs. Bucks
The win was also important for Lakers head coach Darvin Ham who made his first return to the place he had been an assistant the previous five years, winning an NBA Championship in 2021. The Lakers coach had a ton of praise for his star big man after the game.
Ham pointed to Davis’ relentlessness and refusal to settle, continuing to attack the rim, which Ham believes helped the Lakers get to the free throw line regularly on the night. Ham also added that he told Davis the team was going to lean on him, but that has been the case for weeks now and will continue to do so with the recent results the Lakers have been seeing behind it.