Before the season started, former NBA player Stephen Jackson thought the Los Angeles Lakers were going to win the title.
That belief didn’t waver as the year went on, and when league play shuttered to a stop in mid-March, Jackson felt the same way.
On the Bill Simmons Podcast on Friday, Jackson said he thinks that if the season resumes, the Lakers will win the NBA Finals.
The reason: LeBron James has never had a partner like Anthony Davis.
“I called Anthony Davis Tim Duncan on steroids because Tim wasn’t athletic and he didn’t shoot 3s,” Jackson said.
That’s not to take anything away Jackson’s former teammate Duncan, a five-time champion who is widely regarded as the best power forward in league history.
But Davis is attempting 3.5 3-pointers per game this season, by far the most in his career. His percentage hasn’t dropped off either, still making about a third of his attempts.
Nobody has ever averaged at least 25 points, 2.0 blocks, 1.0 steals and 1.0 3-pointers per game in a season, according to Basketball Reference.
With averages of 26.7 points, 2.4 blocks, 1.5 steals and 1.2 3s, Davis is on pace to crush those marks.
With his scoring, rebounding and defense, Davis is a two-way big that James had never had as a teammate.
“I just haven’t seen LeBron with that dynamic of a big man like Anthony Davis,” Jackson said. “I never seen LeBron with a guy with that much talent.”
The only team that could legitimately challenge the Lakers, Jackson thinks, is the Clippers.
“If anybody gave them a chance, it would’ve been the Clippers,” Jackson said. “The only way they can beat them is by punking them and the Clippers have that capability.”
Matt Barnes thinks the Clippers have the edge in a matchup. Jackson’s co-host of the “All The Smoke” podcast, Barnes appeared on Simmons’ pod, too.
“They had a cage full of dogs,” Barnes said. “Adding the Morris twin at the end, Kawhi (Leonard) and Paul (George) are going to do their thing, but to me they had so much more chemistry and camaraderie as a team.”