Anthony Davis has been at the center of a media firestorm the past few weeks. After requesting a trade from the Pelicans, it appeared he’d be leaving New Orleans at the trade deadline, but instead, various trade negotiations with the Lakers apparently fell apart at the last minute, meaning that he’ll have to remain with his incumbent team at least until the summer.
There was some question about whether the organization might try to sit him for remainder of the season to avoid potential injury, but the league quickly quashed that idea by threatening to fine the team $100,000 for every game that Davis missed while healthy and eligible to play.
So Davis continued to play after the deadline, but ended up leaving Thursday’s game against the Thunder with a shoulder bruise – and departing the arena altogether before the final buzzer – which may have precipitated the dismissal of embattled GM Dell Demps the following day amid the ongoing debacle.
In any case, there was some skepticism that Davis would be able to play in the All-Star Game in Charlotte on Sunday, but according Marc Stein of The New York Times, the Pelicans big man has been cleared to play.
Word out of the Team LeBron locker room: Anthony Davis is "good to play" in tonight's All-Star Game
— Marc Stein (@TheSteinLine) February 18, 2019
Just how many minutes he’ll play is still unclear, and it will obviously be at the discretion of his coaches and depend on how he feels. The safe bet, however, is that he’ll probably air on the side of caution, seeing as how he’ll have to play out the second half of the regular season, while minimizing the potential for injury as much as possible along the way.
