Lakers News: Despite Recent Play, Anthony Davis Continues To Disappoint Charles Barkley

AD has looked like an All-NBA player of late.

It's tough to be the greatest player in the league. Just ask Los Angeles Lakers All-Star small forward LeBron James, who probably wore that crown from about 2008-2018. He had plenty of challengers to his throne, as evinced by the fact that he only captured four MVP awards in that run.

There's certainly no shame in topping out as, say, the 12th best player in the league, as Anthony Davis probably did during his first Lakers season in 2019-20.

The 29-year-old eight-time All-Star big man's improved recent play seems to have been galvanized both by the absence of James from Lakers lineups (he's missed five straight games and is questionable tonight) and by a new emphasis in Laker-land to get Davis increased touches in the paint. He finally looks like an All-NBA (i.e. top 15) NBA player, after seeming out-of-sorts last season with a poor supporting cast and an unfamiliar role on the floor as a center without a jumper.

AD has adjusted to life without the jumper, and though he has been feasting primarily on bad teams, he still put up shockingly-awesome numbers against the Phoenix Suns in L.A.'s 115-105 Tuesday loss. While the Suns may have been missing floor leader Chris Paul and starting power forward Cameron Johnon to injuries (plus reserve four Jae Crowder, who has been away from the team as he hopes for a trade out of town), they still fielded a formidable bunch, including All-NBA shooting guard Devin Booker and 2018 No. 1 draft pick Deandre Ayton, a tough two-way center.

Ahead of that Suns defeat on TNT's "Inside The NBA," Hall of Fame power forward-turned-Emmy winning TV personality Charles Barkley discussed why, even with the uptick in play, AD has ultimately underwhelmed him.

"There's no 38-year-old guy [who] should be the best player on an NBA team, no matter how great LeBron is," Barkley said. "Anthony Davis, I said five years ago, 'This guy's gonna be the best player in the world.' And he's disappointed us. He's disappointed everybody. He should be the best player in the league by now."

Davis did have all the tools to be the league's single-best player, at least on paper. But so do a handful of other gifted players. There's no shame in being, say, the 15th-best player in the league, which feels like Davis's current wheelhouse, especially if he keeps up his current play and L.A. inches closer to a .500 record when the calendar flips to 2023.