Though Anthony Davis is on top of the world right now with the Los Angeles Lakers, it wasn’t that long ago that he was stuck with the New Orleans Pelicans. He really wanted to move on from the team that drafted him during the 2018-2019 season but they made him wait it out. That year was really tough for him and the superstar big man recently decided to get brutally honest about the end of his Pelicans tenure.
“I didn’t want to go to practice, I didn’t want to play,” Davis said, via Preston Ellis of The Bird Writes. “There was just a lot going on because I didn’t have that joy with me anymore. Getting into it with the fans, the media, it was just a lot. I wasn’t in a great frame of mind — a great space for me to be joyful.
“Every day was like, ‘Ugh, here’s another day. I can’t wait until the season is over.’ Things like that. You’d see people say, ‘AD, you traitor!’ and I’d think, ‘What? You don’t understand what I’m going through.’ It was all wearing down on me at one time, but I had a great team around me, from my agency to my family to my friends, ‘Nah, forget what they’re saying. You’re doing what’s best for you and your family.’”
Davis had to wait until the end of the season to get moved but it was obviously better for both sides that he was traded.
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Lakers & Pelicans Did Well in Trade
Now that Davis has signed a long-term contract with the Lakers, it’s much easier to assess the trade that sent him to Los Angeles. The Pelicans can’t be too upset with the deal they got. There was no way Davis was going to stay in New Orleans once his contract was up. The key piece of the trade for the Pelicans was Brandon Ingram, who has developed into an All-Star since getting traded. The team also got some nice role players in Lonzo Ball and Josh Hart.
Obviously, the Lakers won’t complain about the trade. Davis has been excellent since heading to Los Angeles and he helped lead the team to a championship last season. He’s one of the best players in the NBA and he’s going to be with the team for a long time. It’s probably impossible to get fair trade value for a player like Davis but the Pelicans did the best they could given the circumstances.
Davis Having Inconsistent Season
Davis was everything the Lakers could’ve ever hoped for last season. He was a borderline MVP candidate and led the team in scoring. While Los Angeles is still at the top of the NBA this season, Davis has taken a did in production.
He’s had some big games, like a recent 37-point performance against the Chicago Bulls, but he’s also shown some inconsistencies. He’s only averaging 21.8 points a game this year, which is a big decrease from the 26.1 he averaged last year. Davis even admitted that he “sucks right now.” The Lakers shouldn’t be too worried, though. Davis is an elite talent and this season was always going to be a little weird. He’ll pick things up eventually.
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Lakers’ Anthony Davis Opens Up: ‘I Didn’t Want to Play’