Getty New Orleans Pelicans forward Anthony Davis
New Orleans Pelicans forward, Anthony Davis is on a minutes restriction and TNT analyst, Charles Barkley doesn’t like it!
“He’s a great player, but we need him in the league,” Barkley tells me.
“Not sitting out playing a couple minutes a night.”
Per CBS Sports’ Fantasy Sports:
Davis had 12 points (6-14 FG, 0-1 3Pt), 10 rebounds, one assist, one steal, and one block in 21 minutes during Sunday’s 113-90 loss to the Houston Rockets.
Davis returned to the lineup following a one-game absence for personal reasons. While Davis managed yet another double-double, he has seen between 20-22 minutes in 11 straight games. As a result, he’s unable to provide the elite production that fantasy owners have grown accustomed to enjoying over the years.
Davis was put on a minutes restriction at or around the NBA’s trading deadline last month.
Also last month, the Pelicans announced that both the team and Dell Demps mutually parted ways. Demps spent 8 1/2 seasons as general manager of the New Orleans Pelicans.
The Dunk King contest is back after a successful first season. TNT will air four episodes of the popular reality sports competition featuring some of the best dunkers in the world. The shows will air after the first four games of the Eastern Conference Finals. TNT’s Kenny Smith serves as the host of the show while Shaquille O’Neal, Nate Robinson, Julius Erving, Brent Barry and Charles Barkley will be judging the dunkers. According to TNT, 24 contestants will start the contest. Each episode, the dunkers will be scored on their dunks. The top dunkers will advance while those with the lowest scores will be eliminated. The 2016 Dunk King champion Porter Maberry is back for another season as he tries to add back-to-back titles to his resume. YouTube sensation Jordan Kilganon will be competing again as he tries to avenge last season’s loss. Kilganon is one of the most creative dunkers in the country as he constantly invents new ways to dunk. He will be joined by his brother, Chase, as the brothers battle for the $100 purse that goes to the winner of the contest. The initial season was well-received with 10.9 million total viewers. Heavy will be covering the entire contest until a 2017 Dunk King champion is crowned. While TNT has a full rundown of all the contestants, Heavy is here to help you get to know the top contenders and dunkers. The measurements listed for each contestant is courtesy of TNT. Click the arrow on the right side of the middle of the page to see Heavy’s rankings for the best dunkers on The Dunk King 2017. (Getty)
“We will immediately begin the process of restructuring our basketball operations department,” stated Pelicans Owner Gayle Benson.
Demps became the fall guy after Anthony Davis trade talks at the NBA trade deadline went unfulfilled.
In case you missed it: The Lakers and the Pelicans struck out at the NBA trading deadline on February 7th.
Below was what the Pelicans wanted in the trade and the Lakers declined.
As for Anthony Davis:
Demps told Magic this is what he wanted:
✅Lonzo
✅Kuzma
✅Ingram
✅Zubac
✅Hart
✅KCP
✅2019 unprotected FRP
✅2020 FRP swap
✅2021 unprotected FRP
✅2022 FRP swap
✅2023 unprotected FRP
✅2019 and 2021 2nd round picks
Lakers said: 👎🏽✌🏽✌🏽✌🏽✌🏽✌🏽✌🏽
“New Orleans will always be near and dear to my family and me,” Demps told the Advocate newspaper.
Danny Ferry was named Demps’ replacement in the interim.
Per The Bird Writes: For the rest of this season though, Ferry has been handed the reins of the general manager duties on an interim basis, but few, if any, have given much thought to the idea that his interim tag could potentially flip to a much more permanent one while being upgraded to a higher standing within the organization in good time.
As I reported last month, a name that has floated around as potential replacement has been Sam Hinkie.
The former GM and President of Basketball Operations of the Philadelphia 76ers is about as analytics as they come!
New Orleans Pelicans are considering Sam Hinkie as president of Basketball Operations.
#TrusttheProcess part 2?
A disciple of Daryl Morey and the Houston Rockets, Morey’s “trust the process” mantra became a “thing” in the Sixers’ locker room, their fan base and in pop culture references.
Furthermore, Hinkie helped the Philadelphia 76ers get a major facelift in the post-Allen Iverson, Andre Iguodala era. He hired current head coach, Brett Brown, drafted Joel Embiid, signed Robert Covington and a bit more.
If the Pelicans restructure their front office, it has been said that the New Orleans Pelicans might listen.
Could AD still end up in a Lakers uniform?
“That’s a good question,”Charles Barkley tells me. “I don’t know the answer to that question. I wish I knew it but it’s going to be interesting.”
Interesting it will be!
LeBron James is recovering from a major groin injury.
Los Angeles Lakers’ LeBron James injury is more complex than what has been initially reported, I’m told.
Per Lakers source: “LeBron could ‘rush back’ and return at the end of January. But he could very well be out until the end of February, or even longer.”
Jason Kidd is rumored to be a Lakers coaching candidate.
Luke Walton gone in LA? If Walton were fired, Mark Jackson is a likely candidate. So is Jason Kidd. I asked a credible league source this afternoon whether they thought Kidd would be a good fit.
They told me: “it would be great” and “anything is possible.”
And then there’s free agency to consider.
With the Lakers’ season ending without an NBA Playoffs appearance, the team has a lot to consider this offseason.
LA purposely filled their roster with one-year contracts to maintain their salary cap flexibility for the summer of 2019 where several NBA superstars like Kevin Durant, Kawhi Leonard, Klay Thompson, Jimmy Butler, Kyrie Irving, Kemba Walker, DeMarcus Cousins, and DeAndre Jordan are expected to become unrestricted free agents.
The Anthony Davis experiment could be out of their hands, too!
Davis has been the intrigue of Boston Celtics GM Danny Ainge for years.
“Now Anthony Davis, Danny Ainge’s been wanting to get this guy since he was at Kentucky,” NBA insider Chris Sheridan told me on the Scoop B Radio Podcast.
“And we have to remember Danny has four-1st round draft picks coming up. He has players that can’t even get into the line up. He’s also got contracts he can move like Gordon Hayward. The question is can Kyrie [Irving] last in Boston because Tony Rozier can probably take his spot.”
The “Derrick Rose Rule” prevented the Celtics from trading for Davis this season.
Per Business Insider: NBA teams are prohibited from trading for two “designated” players (a reference to their contracts). The Celtics already have one in Kyrie Irving, and Davis is on a “designated” contract now. Irving is eligible to become a free agent this summer and assuming he opts out, his “designated” contract will have expired. Only then could the Celtics trade for Davis.
Lakers and Celtics are not the only teams who could be in the hunt for Davis come summer time.
The Denver Nuggets reached out to the Pelicans before the NBA trading deadline and offered a package that included Michael Porter Jr. for Anthony Davis.
Chris Sheridan also told the Scoop B Radio Podcast not to count the Philadelphia 76ers as an outlier team.
Anthony Davis will end up in one of 5 places per @sheridanhoops on #ScoopBRadio – t.co/osBSW0Svle
“Anthony Davis is either going to stay in one of five places. Either stay with the Pelicans, or end up in Boston, LA, or Philadelphia.”
The New York Knicks also approached the Pelicans about Davis in a deal without including Kristaps Porzingis prior to Porzingis being shipped to the Dallas Mavericks.
The summer will be here soon! Buckle up.