Through the first two games of the season, Anthony Davis has emerged as the Los Angeles Lakers’ leading scorer and a threat on the court. The Lakers still have LeBron James, who some consider the best player in NBA history, but Davis began the season as the team’s primary weapon on both offense and defense.

“It’s very important for him to be the main focus for us every night,” James said after the game. ESPN’s Dave McMenamin. “We know what he’s going to do defensively, but offensively we need to find him in many places throughout the game. And we did that through two games.”

Including Davis was by design, as the Lakers wanted to capitalize on what the nine-time All-Star brought to the court in every game.

“There is an intent to have (Davis) involved as much as possible,” Lakers head coach JJ Redick said after the game. “We know what kind of player he is and how he can create mismatches.”

James has been the primary face of the Lakers since joining the team in 2018, but he also turns 40 this season and Davis is expected to have a longer future with the team. James still plans to play in every game this season barring injury, but the Lakers appear to be more focused on Davis.

The results were excellent. Davis scored at least 35 points in the Lakers’ first two games of the season. In Tuesday’s season opener, Davis had 36 points, 16 rebounds and 4 assists. On Friday against the Phoenix Suns, Davis recorded 35 points, 8 rebounds and 4 assists. He led the Lakers in scoring in every game and became the third Laker to start the season scoring at least 35 points in consecutive games. Only Elgin Baylor and Jerry West had done this before.

Davis’ performance also benefited the team. The Lakers won their season opener for the first time since 2016 and started the season 2-0 for the first time since Phil Jackson became head coach in 2010-11.

It’s still early in the season, but Davis looks poised to lead the Lakers in points per game for the first time since the 2019-20 season, when the Lakers last won the NBA Finals.

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