The Los Angeles Lakers are expected to stay strong.
According to TNT’s Chris Haynes, the Lakers are preparing to sign Anthony “The Brow” Davis (forward/center, 6-foot-9, 208 pounds) to an extension.
Davis’ contract expires at the end of the 2024-2025 season. However, his contract for that season is categorized as a player option, meaning it could actually expire after the upcoming 2023-2024 season. It makes sense for the Lakers to negotiate an extension with Davis, who is the centerpiece of their offense.
The Lakers acquired Davis in the summer of 2019. With Davis in the fold and a formidable one-two punch with LeBron James, the Lakers immediately won a championship in the 2019-2020 season. After his contract expired, Davis re-signed with the Lakers. The Lakers locked him up for five years and $190 million.
At the time of the championship, Davis was entering his prime and was arguably the best big man in the league, so the size of his contract seemed appropriate, but the immediate aftermath of the championship season was devastating. Davis has been plagued by injuries for years. In the past two seasons, he’s played a combined 76 games. This season, he was limited to 56 games.
He returned to the court late in the season and played consistently, helping the Lakers reach the Western Conference Finals for the first time since 2020. As such, the Lakers are expected to give Davis a contract similar in size to his current deal. However, with James in his late 30s and Davis approaching his 40s, it remains to be seen how interested Davis will be in staying with the Lakers.
The Lakers need to bring in a new superstar to replace James. However, there is still time, and the team is expected to re-sign Austin Rivers and Rui Hachimura this offseason to help build for the future. At the same time, it will be important to see if the Lakers can offer Davis, who is entering his 30s, a contract he will be happy with.스포츠토토
Davis averaged 25.9 points (.563 .257 .784), 12.5 rebounds, 2.6 assists, 1.1 steals, and 2 blocks in 34 minutes per game this season. His overall contributions were similar to his last championship run, and he averaged more than 25 points per game for the second time in a Lakers uniform, while also pulling down the most rebounds per game.