Davis is Out, But That's Not the Shocking Part

The Pelicans decided over this past weekend that they would shut down Anthony Davis for the rest of the season. Davis has a nagging shoulder injury and a knee injury. He will have surgery on his knee and surgery on a torn labrum in his left shoulder. Davis had an opportunity to earn an extra $24 million dollars thanks to the Derrick Rose rule. If a player on their rookie contract is an All-Star starter twice, named to any All-NBA teams twice, or wins an MVP award in their first four NBA seasons, that player can sign for 30% of their teams cap as opposed to 25%. Davis was an All-Star starter last season, but was off the bench for the All-Star game this season. He doesn't have an MVP and will not win the award this season. His only hope at making his $24 million bonus is that he makes one of the three All-NBA teams this season.

Now for the most shocking part of all this news. Davis has been playing with a torn labrum in his left shoulder for THREE YEARS. Davis has only been in the NBA for 4 seasons. It is mind blowing that the Pelicans organization would let him play with this injury for as long as he has. It's one thing to put off the surgery if he thinks he can help his team make a playoff push, but last year was the first season that the Pelicans made the playoffs with Davis. The only reason he is getting the surgery now is because of the knee surgery he has to miss time for. Also his team is a long shot for making the post season this year. 

Davis has been injury riddled for his professional career so far. He has yet to have a season playing more than 68 games. Davis is a special talent and at 22 he has yet to hit his prime. If the Pelican want to win with Davis leading the team their number one priority should be to make sure their franchise player is healthy. This really makes me question the Pelicans as a franchise. Jrue Holiday and Eric Gordon have not been healthy since arriving in New Orleans. This makes many question if Holiday and Gordon have been getting the right treatment. If the Pelican want to become a contender they must start taking these injuries much more serious because is ridiculous for a guy like Anthony Davis to be playing with a shoulder injury for three years.

Baron Davis Future in the NBA

By now most people have heard about Baron Davis attempting a comeback in the NBA. Davis, 36, last played for the Knicks in 2012 before suffering a gruesome knee injury. Davis hasn't played in four years, but he has made his way back to the basketball court. Davis is currently playing for the Delaware 87ers, the 76ers' D-League affiliate. Davis has been playing pretty well under low minutes. The question becomes, what is Davis' next move?

Most players that comeback to the league are looking to win an NBA championship. Tracy McGrady did this in 2013 with the San Antonio Spurs. Sometimes players are trying to find that one last opportunity to capture that ring that they have always strived for. Maybe Davis can do this by signing with a top team.

Photo Credit: Noah Graham

Another route Davis can go is he can be a mentor to a young team. He could be called up by the 76ers to provide the veteran leadership that always seems to be missing from the 76ers locker room. Or maybe he can go to Minnesota to take Garnett's place as the old head on the bench. He would be able to give tips to the younger guards in LaVine and Rubio. Garnett will without a doubt still be around the organization, but Davis will be on the road with the team and constantly involved with the activities the players will be doing. Something Garnett won't be apart of if he is no longer on the bench.

The future for Davis is cloudy. The NBA has a lot of depth at the point guard position and only two to three teams are looking for a point guard. With that in mind those teams probably aren't looking at Davis as the solution to there problem because of his age. He doesn't have much left to fill a big hole, but he would be a great addition for any team looking for veteran experience.