From Jerry West and Elgin Baylor, to Magic Johnson and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, to Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal and now to LeBron James and Anthony Davis, the Los Angeles Lakers have always had the premier talents of the NBA on the roster. Nearly every NBA superstar who could potentially come available is looked at as a future member of the Lakers, and that will likely now be the case for Milwaukee Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo.
Antetokounmpo is known for being extremely competitive and wanting to win at all costs. So it shouldn’t have come as much of a surprise when he spoke in an interview last week about wanting to win more championships and being willing to go to another franchise to do so.
Of course, this set off plenty of alarms and fans everywhere began dreaming of a way to get Antetokounmpo in the purple and gold of the Lakers. That includes former NFL star Richard Sherman who is now a co-host on Undisputed where he suggested a blockbuster trade in which the Lakers trade away Davis for Giannis:
Giannis and LeBron James teaming up on the Lakers? ?
@RSherman_25 puts together a blockbuster trade package for Lakers to land Giannis Antetokounmpo pic.twitter.com/ZvUd6DEfxj— UNDISPUTED (@undisputed) August 30, 2023
A Davis for Giannis deal would send shockwaves throughout the NBA and likely anger everyone who is not a fan of the Lakers as it would be a case of the franchise getting yet another superstar. A potential trade package for Giannis would have to be massive and Davis being the centerpiece of such a deal would only make sense as it would give the Bucks a serious piece back in such a move.
Davis is one of the few players in the league who can even approach the talent level of Giannis with many believing he is the more skilled player. However, Giannis’ consistency and relentlessness have separated the two in the eyes of most and his two regular season MVPs are proof of how great he is.
Of course, this is all speculative, and Giannis isn’t even on the trade block as the Bucks will undoubtedly do everything in their power to appease their superstar. But if they do eventually have to look to trade him, the Lakers will be a team to watch, and Davis will be a name brought up regularly.
Charles Barkley believes Anthony Davis must play at MVP level for Lakers to be contenders
While his consistency and ability to lead have been questioned, no one doubts the pure talent of Anthony Davis and TNT analyst Charles Barkley believes that is the key to the Lakers being a true championship contender this season.
In a recent podcast appearance, Barkley said that Davis must play at an MVP level in order for the Lakers to have a big run and potentially win a championship next season.