Lakers: ESPN Analyst Torches Anthony Davis Over His Surprising Practice Habits

Stephen A. Smith took a flame-thrower to Anthony Davis over the Lakers big man admitting he hasn't shot a basketball since early April.

The story of the Lakers weekend for the first time in a long time, had little to do with new head coach Darvin Ham or Russell Westbrook. It was all about Anthony Davis. In a video that posted over the weekend, the Lakers big man admitted that he hasn't shot a basketball since April 5th. 

Lakers fans and the basketball world reacted strongly to the news. On Monday, the infamous and bombastic Stephen A. Smith laid into Davis over not practicing his shot on ESPN's First Take. 

"This dude shot 18 percent from three-point range and you're going to tell me that after you missed the playoffs, missed the play-in, with LeBron James as your teammate, and you're not working on your shooting? You should be shooting everyday. You should be shooting when you're laying down with your kid. You should be shooting NERF basketballs. You should be shooting at garbage cans. You should be going to a restaurant and throwing the damn receipt into the garbage. I don't care what it is, you should shoot something."

Knowing that his monologue would generate conversation, and articles like this one, Smith qualified his statement after the fact. 

"Anthony Davis, when healthy, is a top seven player on the planet. I want him to know that's how I think about him. Anthony Davis is big time when healthy, but there is no getting around how absent his perimeter shooting was this past season."

Davis hasn't been healthy since the Lakers 2020 championship. Over the last two seasons, Davis has played in just 49.4% of LA's regular season games. His groin injury in the 2021 playoffs doomed the Lakers to a first round exit.

The last things most Lakers fans wanted to hear was how little Davis is practicing after a disastrous season for the purple and gold.