Will Anthony Davis lead the Pelicans to the Western conference finals?

Anthony Davis is one of the most beloved former Wildcats of the John Calipari era. Will The Brow help lead the Pelicans to the Western Conference Finals?

Anthony Davis is one of the most beloved former Wildcats of the John Calipari era. Davis was the centerpiece of the 2012 National Championship team. After winning Game 1 of the the Pelicans’ first-round series against the Trail Blazers last night, Davis has New Orleans one step closer to winning a playoff series. Can The Brow help lead the Pelicans to the Western Conference Finals?

Davis, a five-time NBA All-Star, had arguably his best season as a pro. Davis averaged 28.1 points per game, second in the league only to the likely NBA MVP James Harden. The 75 games that Davis played this year matched his career-high from last year and erased any notion that he is injury-prone.

Anthony Davis, especially after this season, has elevated his status to that of a top 5 NBA player. Now the question becomes, can he lead his team to a playoff series victory? After last night’s dominant performance (35 points, 14 rebounds, 4 blocks and 2 steals), that ended in a Pelicans’ win, I think the answer is a resounding yes.

After DeMarcus Cousins went down before the All-Star break with a torn Achilles, New Orleans’ season was thought to be lost. Don’t forget, Boogie was averaging 25.2 points, 12.9 rebounds and 5.4 assists per game while playing alongside The Brow.

Undeterred, Davis dominated throughout the remainder of the regular season. He’s had his fair-share of help this season from Jrue Holiday and former Kentucky basketball star Rajon Rondo, but this is Davis’ team.

What Davis’ first playoff win means

The victory over Portland last night proved that Anthony Davis can win in the playoffs, something he hadn’t done to this point. But, to be fair, his 0-4 record was against the Golden State Warriors. That was also before Cousins joined forces with AD.

None the less, a victory on the road in Game 1 is impressive. If Davis continues his brilliance, look for New Orleans to advance past the Blazers. That would set up a potential matchup against the defending champions, the Warriors.

Though taking out Golden State to advance to the Western Conference Finals would be a tall task, a player of Davis’ ability is the perfect one to do it. Davis is a matchup nightmare for almost every team in the league. With the exception of maybe Karl-Anthony Towns and Joel Embiid, no big man can go toe-to-toe with AD.

There’s a lot of games still left to be played. But, it was great to see Davis get the monkey off his back and secure his first playoff win. Davis will be a force throughout the remainder of his time in the NBA postseason. We’ll just have to stay tuned.