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| Anthony Davis will miss the remainder of the NBA season and Olympic Rio Games. |
The news of Anthony Davis, the 23-year old basketball phenom, will mess the rest of the NBA season to finally fix his bad shoulder and knee disturbs me.
by Rodney FisherYou draft a 19-year old freak of nature, NCAA champion, and Olympic gold medalist as your cornerstone building block for a franchise and a city to promote, but because you want to remain marginally relevant and stay in the conversation with free agents you allow your him to forego getting his torn labrum fixed for three years?
I don't see the rationale here by the Pelicans to let this linger so long.
"If I think about, 'Oh well, I can keep playing with my knee and all this,' I think that's just being selfish."
I commend Davis for playing through off-and-on pain in his left shoulder, but son you have to put your young body first when it comes to a team that can not make the playoffs or put adequate pieces around you. Don't wait for three more years to pass and you start to have knee trouble before you decide to finally do something.
With his partially torn labrum, Davis has still proven to be one of the NBA brightest young stars. We should all be more impressed today by his 21pts, 10 board career average.
Why do the Pelicans believe that now is the time to have this surgery done? Does it have anything to do with a $24 million bonus added to his contract extension if he makes an All-NBA team this season? Hard to do if you only play 61 games.
"Of course it came up. But nah, I told them, at the end of the day, I'm worried about my health. It it happens, it happens. I mean, it's gonna take care of itself."
This is what happens when there is no true veteran leadership on the team to guide Davis. I can't see Kobe, LeBron, Garnett, Duncan, or any of the All-Star players that he has played with telling him to let this linger on for this team. If you were a legitimate contender in the conference or a perennial playoff team, then maybe. But for the New Orleans Pelicans...a franchise that can't get him a solid coach?
This is expected to sideline him for five to six months, missing his opportunity to play for the Olympic team. This honor that only comes around every four years is too important to pass up for a young player looking to grow his brand.
"Twenty-three years old...A couple more Olympics, maybe? But it's definetely a tough situation. I love USA basketball, love when I was there in 2012, love when I played in the World Cup in 2014."
Maybe the change of heart by Davis and the Pelicans to finally make repairs will signify a postive change for both parties. Maybe the Pelicans will take their time and finally put together a team around their young star. For others in the NBA, be ready for a two-arm Anthony Davis to return...
Do you think Anthony Davis is being too nice to the Pelicans?
