NBA Trade Rumors: Should the New Orleans Pelicans Consider Dealing Anthony Davis Soon?
Different injuries have caused Davis to miss games at various points throughout his career
Anthony Davis has been the face of the New Orleans Pelicans for quite some time now, and the designation is very well deserved.
Over the course of the different seasons, Davis has represented the franchise as an All-Star multiple times. He also led the way for the team back in 2015, the year they broke through and earned a playoff berth.
Davis was billed as a can't-miss prospect during his college days, and he has lived up to that and then some.
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Still, not everything has gone according to plan for Davis and the Pelicans.
That 2015 playoff appearance is still the only one for the franchise since Davis came to town, and while the team is playing better this season, they are still far from guaranteed to earn another berth.
Even if the Pelicans somehow made it to the playoffs, they are going to struggle to make any kind of noise there, and they could end up being bounced in the first round.
At this point, the Pelicans find themselves just good enough to not be in the NBA's proverbial cellar, but not good enough to be considered as any kind of serious title contender.
So, with the Pelicans not expected to contend for the NBA title anytime soon, is now the time for them to ponder making a big move such as trading Davis?
To be clear, an uncertain path to the NBA's promised land is not the only reason for why the Pelicans may want to consider dealing Davis.
Davis has missed more than his fair share of games over the course of his career due to injuries, As seen in Basketball-Reference, he has only been able to exceed more than 70 games played in a season once in his career up to this point.
The 24-year-old is also dealing with another injury currently – one that has been diagnosed as left adductor strain – though this one not expected to be too serious. Still, there are questions lingering, and there is a chance that his injury issues could become more serious the older he gets.
If the Pelicans opt to deal Davis perhaps next offseason, they could recoup a bounty of future assets in exchange for a player who could end up dealing with more injuries down the road. Trading him could prove wildly unpopular with the fan base and may plunge the team into the aforementioned cellar of the league, but it may be what is needed so that the franchise can start building a more solid foundation around a different player.
At present, the Pelicans' upside may be that of a lower playoff seed in the Western Conference and nothing more, but if they can flip Davis and acquire great assets for him in return, then they can effectively hit the reset button and perhaps assemble a team with true, championship potential.
More news about the latest NBA trade rumors should be made available soon.
