Lakers starting lineup: Was Anthony Davis bluffing about playing center?

The Los Angeles Lakers starting lineup has been released for their season opener, which could have Anthony Davis playing at center.

Leading up to the 2021-22 NBA season, Lakers big man Anthony Davis was vocal about the notion that he could play more center this year than he has previously with Los Angeles.

Yet, with the Lakers set to open their year against the Warriors on Tuesday, the starting lineup came out and it told us something about what Davis had been hyping throughout the buildup to the year.

Starting for LA is Russell Westbrook, Kent Bazemore, LeBron James, Anthony Davis and DeAndre Jordan, per Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports.

Anthony Davis playing center for the Lakers might’ve been too good to be true.

The big note, of course, is that Davis will remain at the power forward position while Lakers newcomer DeAndre Jordan will play center to start the game against Golden State.

Jordan, who signed with the team last month, spent his first decade in the NBA as a Los Angeles Clipper. Since 2018, Jordan has become a trading chip in several recent trades, bouncing from the Dallas Mavericks to the New York Knicks, then to the Brooklyn Nets and, finally, the Detroit Pistons.

Lakers coach Frank Vogel doesn’t expect the starting lineup to change much this season, but believes “it wouldn’t be surprising if Davis and Jordan rotate minutes at the five.” Dwight Howard, another offseason acquisition, is also expected to get some playing time in at the five off the bench.

Vogel’s assertion means that there’s still a good chance that Davis gets a good number of minutes playing center against the Warriors and throughout the year. However, it does stifle the anticipation a bit to see him not starting at the five.

We’ll have to see just how much of the offseason chatter was Davis bluffing and how much is legit.