Anthony Davis makes return to New Orleans with Lakers on Wednesday

Los Angeles Lakers superstar Anthony Davis is set to make his long-awaited return to New Orleans to take on his former team the Pelicans on Wednesday night. The blockbuster trade shook the basketball world this past summer with LeBron James finding his running mate to try and bring championships back to Los Angeles.

There will certainly be emotions for Davis, who wanted to be traded to LA, but had expressed his gratitude for the city of New Orleans and everything it had done for him. It’ll be interesting to see what type of reception The Brow receives when he’s introduced, but my guess is he’ll get a warm welcome back.

In today’s NBA you can’t fault Davis for wanting to jump ship for greener pastures. The Pelicans hadn’t done nearly enough to surround him with a good enough team to compete with the Warriors, and he opted to join LeBron in LA. The Lakers traded away key young pieces in Lonzo Ball, Josh Hart and Brandon Ingram in order to acquire the All-Star power forward. They still have a solid young piece in Kyle Kuzma to build around James and AD in their quest to give the Lakers their first title since 2010.

Now that all the details are out of the way, let’s take a look at what Davis’ return means for fantasy basketball and sports betting at DraftKings Sportsbook.

How will Anthony Davis perform in his return to New Orleans?

I’d imagine he performs pretty well. The Pelicans are dealing with multiple injuries in the front court, including Derrick Favors. NOLA has allowed at least 128 points in each of its past two losses, so the defense has been lackluster so far this season. The Lakers enter this game one of the hottest teams in the NBA on a seven-game winning streak. Davis has been able to stay healthy, playing at least 33 minutes in each of the past four games. He’s been perpetually probable this season due to different ailments, but I can’t imagine they’ll hold AD back in this spot. Even if the game gets out of hand — which it could — my guess is AD plays a normal workload and is very motivated.

Betting Lines, Player Props for Lakers vs. Pelicans

Betting lines

Point spread: Lakers -6
Point total: 230.5
Money line: Lakers -265, Pelicans +215

Anthony Davis prop bets

Points: 26.5
Rebounds: 10.5
To score first field goal of the game: +450
Assists: 3.5
Record a double-double: Yes -152, No +125
Total points + rebounds + assists: 40.5