As?Anthony Davis scoring average has soared, now to the highest mark in the NBA, so too has criticism over the lack of support he is getting from his New Orleans Pelicans teammates to make a similar rise in the Western Conference standings.Davis, speaking to ESPNs Marc Stein on the TrueHoop: Conversations podcast, acknowledged that he hears talk about his current predicament but doesnt necessarily agree.I hear it. I see it. Im on social media, so I see it all the time, Davis told Stein. But I think, for me, its just about the guys in that locker room. I know they come out here every day in practice and every night in the game and fight and leave everything on the floor. Its nothing that I try to pay attention to as much. But you see it. You have to pay attention to it.For me, thats not my M.O. to get into all the media and all that stuff. I just worry about whats going on in that locker room and on the floor with the guys I have in the locker room.Davis has reached new heights in his fifth season in New Orleans. As of Monday, he leads the NBA in points (31.6) and blocks (2.8) while averaging career highs in rebounds (11.0), steals (1.8) and minutes (37.2). The 23-year-old said his ability to block out the public conversation, much like his game, has grown over the years.Of course, my rookie year, its really the first time people are really, really talking about you, Anthony said. Of course we had it at Kentucky and a little bit at high school, but when you get to the NBA and of course youre the No. 1 pick, all this medias going to be around you.And so when they start [saying], Oh, injury prone, Hes not a leader, He cant carry [a team], all this stuff, you start to see it. But after a while, as you get older and more established in the league and more experienced, you kind of find a way to tune it out. I think thats the point Im at right now.The Pelicans, who rank 12th in the West at 6-12, started the season 0-8. They won their first four games after the return of Jrue Holiday?but recently lost both ends of a two-game road streak, including a 91-81 defeat to the last-place Dallas Mavericks?on Sunday.Although the Pelicans have fought their way back, Davis admitted the early struggles seemed ominous.We were very worried, Davis told Stein. We didnt envision ourselves being in that situation. But we dug ourselves a hole. Were slowly climbing out of it, and we just have to keep fighting. Nobody wants to start 0-8. Nobody wants to start off on the wrong foot. But it happens.Some teams have whoever on their team where theyre able to do whatever they want on the floor. For us, we have to be blue-collar guys who are coming in, work, being scrappy, first to the floor, rebounding the ball, sharing the ball. Thats how we have to be. Thats how weve been the past couple weeks, and thats how weve been able to get wins.Although Davis individual production has never been better, the three-time All-Star cited ball-handling and passing as the next evolution of his game.I watch LeBron [James], Steph [Curry], all those guys make their teammates better, he said. They find them. Even?Draymond [Green]. He plays the same position and does the same thing, and hes able to find his teammates in a way that I cant right now. Thats definitely what I want to get better at. Georgios Papagiannis Blazers Jersey . There are some early surprises in the race for the Hart Trophy, but two of the contenders are the leagues biggest stars over the past decade. There are many more players in contention for the awards than just the three that Ive named, and a good or bad week can easily alter the landscape, but through the first 20 or so games of the NHL season, this is how the awards races look to me. C.J. McCollum Jersey . -- Stanford squashed Oregons national championship hopes again, schooling the Ducks in power football. https://www.blazerslockerroom.com/Damian-Lillard-City-Edition-Jersey/ . Aduriz headed home Markel Susaetas cross in the sixth minute to open the scoring at San Mames Stadium. He bettered that with a long-range blast that went in off the goal frame in the 18th, and converted a penalty in the 72nd after Diego Mainz was sent off for fouling Aduriz with only the goalkeeper to beat. Portland Trail Blazers Jerseys .com) - The game was all punts and field goals before Kodi Whitfields catch. Nik Stauskas Jersey .Y. - Jerome Samson scored once in regulation and again in the shootout as the St.Giuseppe Rossi is getting his injury-hit career back on track at La Liga strugglers Levante. And with Euro 2016 around the corner, the former Manchester United prodigy is chasing his first call-up for a major tournament with Italy. Nick Wright reflects on his extraordinary journey... In the late 1950s, a young man named José Besalduch moved to Valencia and took a job in construction on a tower block overlooking Levantes old Vallejo stadium. The building was not yet fitted with elevators, but every other weekend he and his co-workers would climb the steps to the fifth floor and watch the action unfold on the pitch beneath them.Besalduch is 85 now, but those Sunday afternoons suspended above Vallejo were the beginning of an unlikely love affair with Valencias other club. My father was a Valencia fan, he told local newspaper Levante-EMV in 2014. He had already made it clear to me: Do not support Levante. You will suffer all your life and they will never win anything. But Besalduch ignored the advice, and has followed Levante religiously ever since - despite his father being proven right. Reaching the Copa del Rey semi-finals in 1935 remains the closest brush with silverware in their 106-year history, and Les Granotes spent four of the last six decades marooned in Spains second and third divisons. Giuseppe Rossi in action for Levante against his former side Villarreal It was enough to test anyones faith, but Besalduch was always there. Over half a century of dedication has earned him the nickname El Gasolina among fellow fans, and after years in the doldrums, Levante are now battling to make it seven straight seasons in La Liga. Now when I watch a match with 17,000 spectators, sometimes I cry with the emotion, said Besalduch. After all Ive seen before, I cry easily.In January, Besalduchs emotion was caught on television cameras at the unveiling of former Manchester United striker Giuseppe Rossi. The Italy international, now 29, had agreed to swap Champions League-chasing Fiorentina for La Ligas bottom club in a bid to revive his career, and Besalduch was overcome with joy as he embraced their prestigious loan signing in a crowd of Levante fans.I am so happy to see you, he said, his voice cracking with emotion. Well see each other every day. Thank you so much for coming. Thank you so much for coming and for choosing our Levante. Thank you so much, because you had other clubs, we know that, and you chose our Levante. For Rossi, too, the journey has been emotional. The 29-year-old is well-known to Spanish football fans having scored 82 goals in 192 appearances for Villarreal from 2007 to 2012, but between bursts of brilliance his career has been punctuated by devastating injuries, repeated knee operations and endless months of rehabilitation.Rossi hails from New Jersey on the east coast of the United States, but at the age of 12 he crossed the Atlantic to join Parmas renowned youth academy in the homeland of his Italian-immigrant parents. Rossi was a rising star, and it wasnt long before Manchester United took advantage of financial turmoil at the Serie A club to steal the speedy little striker away to Old Trafford. Giuseppe Rossi poses with Sir Alex Ferguson after signing for Manchester United as a 16-year-old A 16-year-old Rossi made his first senior appearance in an FA Cup tie against Crystal Palace in November 2004, and 11 months later, he scored on his Premier League debut after replacing Ruud van Nistelrooy in a 3-1 win over Sunderland. Sir Alex Ferguson described him as the future of this club when he was handed a new contract in 2006, but it wasnt to be. Man Utds debut scorers From Rossi to Van Nistelrooy, what has become of Man Utds Premier League debut scorers? After an unsuccessful loan spell at Newcastle and a more prosperous one at his old club Parma in 2006/07, the 5ft 8ins striker was deemed too lightweight to make it in the Premier League. And with a long line of forwards ahead of him in the Old Trafford pecking order, he was granted a £6.7m move to Manuel Pellegrinis Villarreal, where he replaced his former team-mate Diego Forlan.In Spain, Rossi set about showing Ferguson what he was missing. His explosive speed, excellent close-control and instinctive finishing came to the fore in his new surroundings, and Villarreal secured an historic second-placed La Liga finish in his first season. From 13, to 15, to 17, his goal tallies just kept rising, and in a stunning 2010/11 campaign he netted a club-record 32 times in 56 games. Giuseppe Rossi vies with Reaal Madrids Xabi Alonso during his time at Villarreal Rossi had been a full Italy international since his debut in 2008 but he was surprisingly omitted from their 2010 World Cup squad, and in October 2011 his right knee agonisingly buckled in a challenge with Real Madrids Xabi Alonso at the Bernabeu.ddddddddddddSix months on the sidelines followed, but far worse was still to come.Rossi was just days away from returning to action the following April when his knee gave away again in training. As soon as I saw him, I knew it was the same thing, said Villarreal physio Manuel Telló at the time. Hes completely depressed. Rossi had hoped to play his way into Euro 2012 contention and Italy coach Cesare Prandelli was even planning a personal visit, but with that his hopes were dashed.It was a career-threatening setback, and it wasnt just Rossi who suffered. Without their talisman, Villarreal were relegated from La Liga for the first time since 1998/99. The striker had played his last game for the Yellow Submarine, and in January 2013, despite Rossi undergoing three knee ligament operations in the previous 18 months, Fiorentina paid 10 million euros to take him back to Italy. Giuseppe Rossi celebrates a goal for his former side Fiorentina Rossi was hoping to reward the Violas faith by returning for the final months of the 2012/13 Serie A season, but it wasnt until the last day of the campaign that he was able to make his long-awaited debut - 571 days on from that fateful day at the Bernabeu. Rossi had shown remarkable perseverance through the dark months on the sidelines, and in the first half of the 2013/14 campaign, he reminded everyone exactly what he was capable of. By Christmas, he was top of the Serie A scoring charts with 16 goals in 17 appearances - including a stunning 14-minute hat-trick in a 4-2 win over champions Juventus. Ronaldo hasnt been good enough Spanish football expert Guillem Balague on Cristiano Ronaldo, Atletico Madrid and more. His manager Vicenzo Montella described him as a genius of football and there was a return to the international fold too - but in January 2014, disaster struck again. Fiorentina were 1-0 up against Livorno when a cynical foul from defender Leandro Rinaudo damaged the same knee ligaments for a third time. As the realisation dawned on him, Rossi pulled his shirt over his face and left the field in tears.There would be no World Cup 2014 call-up, and complications eventually kept him out for the entirety of last season. When he finally returned as a late substitute in a 3-1 defeat to Torino last August, he had gone another 456 days without kicking a ball. This time, however, there was no explosive comeback. Giuseppe Rossi has scored seven goals in 30 appearances for Italy Rossi struggled to recapture his best form, and when the January transfer window came around, he had scored just twice in 16 games. After so many months on the sidelines and with Euro 2016 just around the corner, Rossi - still dreaming of a first major tournament appearance for his country - needed a change.He couldnt say no to Levantes offer of regular playing time in a league he knows well, and his arrival was a coup for one of Spains most unfashionable clubs. You can see from the first minute he got here that hes revolutionised not only the club, but his team-mates, said Levante manager Rubi. Theyre delighted to have a team-mate of his ilk, and that ultimately benefits us all. You can see from the first minute he got here that hes revolutionised not only the club but his team-mates. Levante manager Rubi on Giuseppe Rossi Rossis return to Villarreal on Sunday ended in a 3-0 defeat that kept Levante four points away from safety, but there have been encouraging signs too. Rossi scored on his first start for the club against Sevilla at the end of January, and there was another goal and an assist in a 3-0 win over Getafe.On Wednesday night, things will come full circle when Rossis new side host Real Madrid, the opponent against whom his injury hell started back in 2011. Around Levantes new stadium, there are no fifth-floor viewpoints for opportunist supporters, but Besalduch will be there. Hoping, waiting. Just like Rossi.Watch Levante v Real Madrid live on Sky Sports 1 HD from 7.45pm on Wednesday. Or watch for £6.99 without a contract, on NOW TV. Also See: Van Gaals youngsters Juves new jewel ' ' '