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New Orleans Pelicans: Anthony Davis Wants to Leave?

By Owen Sanborn

Apr 25, 2015; New Orleans, LA, USA; New Orleans Pelicans forward Anthony Davis (23) reacts after a score by the Golden State Warriors during the fourth quarter in game four of the first round of the NBA Playoffs at the Smoothie King Center. The Warriors defeated the Pelicans 109-98. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 25, 2015; New Orleans, LA, USA; New Orleans Pelicans forward Anthony Davis (23) reacts after a score by the Golden State Warriors during the fourth quarter in game four of the first round of the NBA Playoffs at the Smoothie King Center. The Warriors defeated the Pelicans 109-98. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports /
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Disclaimer: Hello New Orleans Pelicans fans. Before I show you this tweet from a not-so mainstream NBA reporter, I just want to make sure that you know this his word is not fact. After you read the tweet (if you have not seen it already), I do not want you to go out into your backyard, dig a hole and then proceed to bury yourself. Your mood and fandom towards the Pelicans should not be affected by this tweet … at least not yet. Thank you. 

NBA reporter Peter Vecsey shared his thoughts on what he is being “told” in regards to Tom Thibodeau’s interest in coaching the Pelicans next season:

It is pretty remarkable how nonchalantly Vescey throws that little nugget (no pun intended) of information that pertains to the future of Anthony Davis in New Orleans. No other media outlet or respected media member has reported this, so I am not sure what kind of merit we should be giving the report.

However, Vescey isn’t a nobody, so there could potentially be something to this. It will be interesting to see if any other NBA reporters piggy back on these thoughts over the next few days as more information from Thibodeau’s camp begins to trickle out.

For the record, Davis is under team control for next season, and the Pelicans will have the option of offering him a qualifying offer of $9,191,949 in June of 2016 that would lead to him becoming a restricted free agent that summer.

There has been speculation that New Orleans will be offering Davis a hefty extension on July 1st of this year in the ballpark of $140 million plus over five years, so that whole restricted free agency thing may not even matter. That number figure is approximate because New Orleans would have the ability to offer Davis 25 percent of the 2015-16 salary cap with a 7.5 percent increases over the duration of the contract.

Nobody is exactly sure what the cap figure is going to for next season and the ensuing seasons (due to the NBA’s new TV deal), making Davis’ contract situation even more intriguing. $140 million is a hell of a lot of money to turn down for a 22-year-old, but it’s not like Davis has been making insignificant sums of money both on and off the court. He could flip the script on New Orleans by signing the qualifying offer next summer, forgo restricted free agency and become an unrestricted free agent (meaning he can sign with any team) during the summer of 2017.

As much as I hate to say it, I don’t think that idea is entirely farfetched. Davis is a remarkable talent that other star players will flock to play with. New Orleans hasn’t notoriously been a marquee destination for free agents to come to, their cap situation isn’t entirely flexible and residing in the Western Conference won’t help matters. The Pelicans barely snuck into the eighth spot this season due mostly in part to a floundering Oklahoma City team being bulldozed by injuries.

The Utah Jazz are ascending to potentially fight for a playoff spot. The Minnesota Timberwolves are way too young to make noise now, but who knows what they look like in five seasons. The rest of the Western Conference’s elite is not going anywhere any time soon (pending injuries of course). It is going to be a real uphill battle for New Orleans to make hay in the West for years to come.

With that in mind, Davis could potentially have his mind set on taking his talents to the East. He is from Chicago for one and as this year’s playoffs have shown us, there really isn’t much competition to advance deep into the playoffs. I for one, will never count out the Miami Heat from somehow convincing Davis and another star (Russell Westbrook maybe??) to team up and take down LeBron. Mr. Riley always seems to figure things out.

Most of these thoughts will probably equate to nothing. The most likely scenario is that Davis happily accepts $140 million (see Anthony, Carmelo) and rides things out in New Orleans with their new coach. The front office must be feeling the pressure to make the correct coaching hire with Davis’ contract talks soon hanging over the organization like a dark, scary cloud and you can bet he is being asked which candidate he prefers most for that very reason.

Davis is ascending himself to be one of the best all-around players in the NBA; over the next couple of summers he may also transform into one of the most powerful.

Next: The Greatest Player In Every Franchise's History

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