Who’s the better power forward: Kevin Love or Anthony Davis?
The Unibrow vs. The Double Double
For a while, Kevin Love has been regarded as one of the most elite power forwards in the league, producing double doubles like an espresso machine and leading a T-Wolves team that has been stuck in the gutters of the Western Conference for far too long.
In a similar situation is Anthony Davis: An extremely talented power forward with unteachable defensive skills putting up fantastic numbers on a bad team that’s struggling to secure a winning record.
This year both players have the supporting cast to turn their franchises around and make a better name for themselves in a league that casts the spotlight solely on winners. But with a tightly contested race for the lower seeds of the Western Conference it’s appearing there may only be room for one team: the T-Wolves, the Pelicans or possibly neither if you’re pulling for the Lakers or Mavs.
So who’s the better power forward? Who can lead their team back to the promise land or at least get close? The offensive juggernaut Kevin Love? Or the rising young phenom Anthony Davis?
Making the case for Kevin Love:
Through the first 4 games of the season Kevin Love has been nothing short of spectacular, averaging 26.2 points, 14.6 rebounds, 4.4 assists and shooting a career high .471% from the field.
It’s a small sample size to go by, but you can tell Love has regained a lot of his confidence after an off year that kept him out 64 games thanks to hand and knee issues.
Recently that self-assurance was in full display against Orlando, after carrying the Wolves to a victory in what seemed like a sure win for the Magic. Down by 3 with 12.5 seconds left, Love drained a clutch three point shot sending the game to overtime (video). It was another moment in which Love showed he’s more than capable of handling tense situations for the team.
Love has all the tools you’d want in a power forward: Great size, a smooth shooting stroke, and excellent rebounding instincts. More importantly he’s also become a much wiser player with 5 seasons under his belt, finding more crafty ways to score the basketball and learning to become a team first player- something Minnesota desperately needs if they hope to secure a playoff berth.
Making the case for Anthony Davis:
To me a unibrow is a silly way to make a name for yourself in the NBA, but Anthony Davis does an amazing job of carrying that intensity between his eyes onto the court with great defensive prowess.
In his first three games of the season, the former No. 1 pick has pulled down 11.4 boards and upped his blocks to 4 a contest which is second in the league, trailing only Roy Hibbert. Again it’s a small sample size but these flashes of excellence go to show what Davis is capable of doing on a nightly basis.
In addition to his improvements on the defensive end, Davis has also evolved into a much more effective offensive player, averaging 21.2 points and boosting his player efficiency rating to a ridiculous 32.1. Just watch how aggressive Davis has become as a scorer in a recent game against the Bobcats (video).
It remains to be seen whether Davis’s breakout performance can continue, but his assertiveness on both ends of the floor is enough for me to become a believer in the ‘Fear the Brow’ campaign.
Who Gets the Edge?
It’s a very tough call to determine who’s a better player with Davis being a superior defender and Love having a far more advanced offensive skill set. But for now I’m choosing the elder Love. Davis is still trying to figure out the ins and outs of basketball and still has some growing pains to experience before he becomes the best power forward in the game. Love, on the other hand, has enough experience to not only lead his team back to the playoffs but draw some serious consideration for the MVP award.
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*All stats and info from NBA.com and Basketball-Reference.
