The Los Angeles Lakers traded multiple valuable assets to pair Anthony Davis with LeBron James. In hindsight, it paid off almost right away, as they were able to win a championship in their first season together.
But things haven’t been as good ever since. Before last season, they struggled to even make the playoffs, with Davis not playing up to his standard due to either inconsistency or multiple injuries.
With that in mind, it’s not surprising to see Heavy’s report about the Lakers’ being reluctant to sign him to an extension. He’s one of the best two-way players in the NBA, but they don’t seem to trust his durability, and rightfully so.
NBA Rumors: Lakers Don’t Want To Extend Anthony Davis Right Away
“They entered the summer with AD on the backburner,” one Western Conference exec told Heavy Sports. “They would like to keep it there, keep that extension on the backburner. They do not need to do it right away. I’d say they’re reluctant and you can understand that at this point.”
“They want to see if (Davis) can stay healthy,” the exec said. “They want to see if this group continues to be what it looked like it could be down the stretch last year. And most of all, they want to see what LeBron does next.”
“But they had some things break their way with free agency, with Reaves and Russell. They have a lot of manageable contracts, good assets. There’s no contract on their books that you say, ‘They could never trade that one.’ There’s no Russell Westbrook this time around. So if you can take a chance and get Davis to extend on something that is not the max, if you get him to sign a deal that recognizes that the market might not be great for a guy so injury-prone, it is a risk worth taking,” the executive concluded.
Of course, everything can change in this league, and Davis is an elite player when he’s at his best, so he could play his way into an extension almost right away. For now, it seems like he’ll have to earn it.
