When considering all aspects of a player, it still seems apparent to most of us that LeBron James is the world’s best player. 

Yes, there were a few seasons recently where some — including me — allowed Steph Curry into that discussion, mostly because he had revolutionized the offensive side of the game and his team was fantastic. And there have been two seasons during which James Harden looked like the world’s best offensive player, including this one.

Russell Westbrook’s season MVP and Kevin Durant’s Finals MVP performance last season earned them a place in the discussion behind LeBron, too.

Still, LeBron has to be considered the best overall, for reasons no one needs to explain anymore.

But, today, after what has happened this year, there can be no denying that, for weeks at a time, Anthony Davis doesn’t just deserve honorable mention on the list of who belongs on the All-NBA first team. He leads the list. 

Yes, Davis now sits on the edge of being the world’s best player — at just 25 years old, no less.

Davis entered the NBA as a bit of an enigma and his early years in the league generated some cause for concern. He was a former guard who grew significantly into a 6-foot-10 forward/center and helped lead his college team at Kentucky to a national title in his only year there. He was not someone that scored easily, however, lacking skills and fluidity overall. Blessed as an elite athlete for sure, Davis was also a quiet and humble man who handled being the top overall pick with class — and perhaps just a tiny lack of confidence compared to some other newly drafted guys in that same draft slot. 

The questions about his overall ability to score were fair, and as he got injured repeatedly through those early years, even more questions arose. He never played more than 68 games in those four seasons, and his New Orleans Pelicans team’s lack of success coupled with his own inability to put up outstanding defensive metrics — once thought to be a sure thing for him — created even more concern.

At this point, however, the uncertainty that once surrounded Davis — and, ultimately — what his ceiling could be, feels like ancient history. 

Davis proved that he belongs among the games best this season, playing alongside another Kentucky one-and-done talent, center DeMarcus Cousins. When Cousins was lost to an injury for the season, everyone just knew the Pelicans, and Davis, were finished — which led us to the revelatory level he has now reached. Davis was the NBA’s best player in February, and he wasn’t just hot, meaning it appears he has taken that final step the world’s best players have to take in order to be in that class. The step is simply being that special most nights.

Davis said that he needed to go into Russell Westbrook mode once Cousins was ruled out for the remainder of the season, and he wasn’t joking. He had five games in which he scored 40 or more points with 10 or more rebounds, and no one has done that in 34 full seasons. These incredible efforts helped push his team to an 8-3 record for the month despite a 1-3 start (and a Sunday win pushed its winning streak to eight). In fact, Davis has had seven such games this year, and his team won all of them. If the Pelicans manage to make the playoffs, Davis is likely to finish no worse than third in the MVP voting, and a runner-up finish seems a given if they can earn a top four seed.

Davis is now one of the truly unique players in modern NBA history. He’s second in the NBA in blocks per game and second in scoring, but he isn’t a power big man like Shaquille O'Neal or a brilliant interior post move maker like Hakeem Olajuwon. Nor is he a true scoring guard in a taller form like Durant or Giannis Antetokounmpo (both top 10 scorers and top 15 shot blockers). Davis scores in every way imaginable now, almost as if he emulates parts of those elite scorers. The combination is what’s so special.

While James Harden is now the league’s best iso-scorer, Davis offers perhaps the most variety, so a defense can’t just focus on one or two areas to slow him down. For three seasons now he has had a beautiful mid-range jumper, getting it off cleanly after a dribble drive or just squaring up after catching the ball in a good spot and shooting once he reads the defense. 

Because he is adept at attacking off a “rip move” or just using his dribble to get to the rim, defenders will back off of him, thus, giving him space to shoot. While he has improved as a 3-point shooter and is more willing to take them now than ever before, these shots are still not a large part of his arsenal. That’s actually a scary thought, because, as he adds a few more threes a game to his act, he will be even more of an offensive threat.

It’s a mistake, though, to think Davis is the scorer he is now just because his skill game made a big jump. The reality is easier to grasp: Davis finally asserts his physical dominance now like those big men mentioned earlier. His length, feel for the ball, great hands, and athletic ability earn him “garbage baskets” nightly in the paint, just because he is hanging around the rim so he can best utilize those gifts — or just easy baskets and dunks because he so values being in the paint and not just looking for his smooth jumper. It is the mark of an elite scoring big man (not named Dirk Nowitzki). 

Davis is a willing runner once his team gets a rebound, and he has no issues banging around for space inside early in the offense. From there, it’s up to his team to read the action, whether he is open immediately or patience is required. Ultimately, Davis is comfortable waiting for the right time to seal his man above him and call for a lob. He is just too good at being derailed by most weakside helpers, so, in one moment, he goes from being not involved in the play to dunking the ball. 

He also has become expert at setting and then slipping screens, as defenders get caught “thinking” about how they will handle his deliberate or drag screens. 

When Davis is catching uncontested passes at the rim for the dunk, it’s almost always because at least one defender took just a moment too long to decide what to do. Now that Davis sees the game as the crafty veteran he is, one second is all he needs.

Lost sometimes in evaluating Davis is his motor. Silky, agile, and bouncy, Davis has a big heart inside his frame, and when combined with his physical size and talent, he keeps shots alive with tips or just ends up grabbing them for putbacks. 

He is tied for 11th in offensive rebounds per game, impressive for someone who carries such an offensive load for his team — meaning he is always an opponent's first mark in the scouting report. Again, he is no longer the thin kid from Kentucky; the physical poundings are now being dealt by him rather than felt.

For years, experts have debated what the fully formed Anthony Davis would look like. We have the answer now, and there is every reason to believe we will see him develop even further. Best in the world now? Only sometimes — though, now, it is happening for longer stretches. Best in the world for a season? Perhaps as early as next year.