"You have to have a thing like 'I’m gonna kick your a** and there’s nothing you can do about it'" - Charles Barkley on Anthony Davis lacking killer instinct, says LeBron James won't be able to pass baton to AD as best player in NBA

The LA Lakers mortgaged their future in 2019 to acquire Anthony Davis from the New Orleans Pelicans and pair him up with LeBron James. LA needed AD to help James carry the team to the championship and to succeed the four-time MVP as the Lakers’ franchise player.

While LA promptly won the 2020 championship, the succession plan hasn’t gone as they would have liked. “King James” continues to carry the team and will likely do so until his contract ends.

Charles Barkley, on “The Bill Simmons Podcast,” said Anthony Davis may never be able to carry the Lakers the way James has been doing:

“At some point, LeBron’s gonna have to say, ‘AD, damn, I’m 100 years old. It’s about time for you to be the best player. You’re in your prime.’

“I said about five or six years ago, ‘That dude there is gonna be the best player in the world for the next 10 years. He’s not even in the conversation anymore. Giannis [Antetokounmpo] is the best player in the world right now.

Barkley added about Davis:

“I don’t think he has that killer instinct. You have to have a thing like, ‘I’m gonna kick your a** and there’s nothing you can do about it.’ … You have to have a mindset like, ‘I want everybody to know I’m the baddest mf out here right now.’”

Anthony Davis made six straight All-Star teams in his seven-year run with the New Orleans Pelicans. He’s only made it twice in four seasons with the LA Lakers. The eight-time All-Star has been beset with injuries and has repeatedly been out of shape.

While trying to stay healthy and in shape, he has been surpassed by some players who weren’t previously on his level like Giannis Antetokounmpo. He has looked great this season for the Lakers, but LeBron James continues to be the team’s best player.

LeBron James is in his 20th season and will be turning 38 this year but still leads the LA Lakers in scoring, assists and minutes played after three games. It’s illogical for the team to continue expecting the four-time MVP to keep this up when Davis is around.

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Anthony Davis hasn’t made LeBron James his model, per Charles Barkley

Anthony Davis and LeBron James during a lull in the action.

LeBron James was a virtual iron man before age started catching up with him. Before signing for the LA Lakers, he averaged 76.2 games per season for 15 years. Anthony Davis, on the other hand, has averaged 55 games in 11 seasons.

Here’s what Charles Barkley had to say on AD’s failure to make James his perfect example:

“The thing that surprises me and shocks me is he’s around LeBron and LeBron talks about how he spends $1 million on his body every year. … If I played with a guy like LeBron, I’m gonna do what he does.

“Whatever he has for breakfast, I’m eating it. Whatever he has for lunch, I’m doing it. Whatever he has for dinner. If he gonna lift weights, ‘Hey man, can I tag along with you?’ That’s what I would do, that’s the part that disappoints me.”

LeBron James still has two years left on his contract with the LA Lakers. Perhaps it’s not too late yet for Davis to make "King James" his example and fulfill the expectations many had of him.