Lakers' LeBron James Says Anthony Davis 'Everything I Expected and More'

Following a 37-point performance by Anthony Davis in the Los Angeles Lakers' 120-107 win over the Philadelphia 76ers on Tuesday night, LeBron James heaped praise on his teammate. 

According to ESPN's Dave McMenamin, LeBron said: 

"It's everything I expected and more. Obviously, that's why I wanted him here. When you get a generational talent like that and you got an opportunity to get him, you just try to do whatever you can to get him.

"I gave my opinion on what I thought he could bring to this franchise. I gave my thoughts about the player—but not only the player, the person. Hopefully, they took my advice to heart. And obviously, ultimately they made the decision to do what we did in the offseason. It's no surprise to me."

Davis' play coupled with an MVP-caliber performance from James this season are the biggest reasons why the Lakers are a Western Conference-best 47-13 and poised to reach the playoffs for the first time since 2013.

Anthony Davis Pours in 37 Points

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Before L.A. acquired Davis during the offseason, he was a stud as a member of the New Orleans Pelicans. He was an All-Star in six of his seven seasons with the team and averaged 23.7 points, 10.5 rebounds, 2.4 blocks and 2.1 assists per game during his tenure.

The one knock against Davis was that he only led the Pelicans to two playoff appearances and one playoff series win, so it was unclear if he could be a top player on a contending team.

Davis has answered those questions this season; he is averaging 26.6 points, 9.5 rebounds, 3.2 assists and 2.5 blocks per contest for a Lakers team that is on pace to secure the No. 1 playoff seed in the Western Conference.

If not for the presence of James on his own team, Davis would likely be garnering more support as an MVP candidate due to the difference he has made for a team that went just 37-45 last season.

Lakers center Dwight Howard is among those who believes Davis' mere presence has helped LeBron raise his individual level of play this season: "Well, AD has had an effect on LeBron. I think the way that he's playing, now LeBron's saying, 'I got to step my level of play up because AD, my running partner, every night he's there.' So I think he's made LeBron, he's given LeBron new life."

There is arguably no better combo in the NBA than James and Davis, which is why the Lakers are favored to reach the NBA Finals out of the West with Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks being heavy favorites in the East.

The Lakers and Los Angeles Clippers were in an arms race during the offseason, and while it can be argued that the Clippers made a bigger impact by landing both Kawhi Leonard and Paul George, the Davis acquisition has arguably been the most impactful and important move.

With the Clips now installed as the No. 2 seed in the West, they and the Lakers may be on a collision course for the Western Conference Finals, which is where Davis would have an opportunity to prove once and for all that he can lead the way for a championship-caliber squad.