Anthony Davis Could Lose $24 Million If The Pelicans Shut Him Down For The Season’s Remainder

Anthony Davis’ season hasn’t exactly gone as planned. Despite his perpetually-injured team’s playoff odds looking increasingly long as spring dawns, though, the New Orleans Pelicans superstar still has something to play for over the remainder of 2015-16 – but he might not be given the chance.

In wake of a left knee injury that forced Davis to exit Friday’s loss to the Portland Trail Blazers in the second quarter, Pelicans coach Alvin Gentry raised the possibility of ending his franchise player’s season for good.

A hyperextended knee isn’t the only ailment with which Davis is dealing. According to Gentry, the shoulder issue that’s plagued him for well over a year remains a concern, too.


New Orleans, considered something close to a playoff lock before the season tipped off in late October, is nine and-a-half games behind the Dallas Mavericks for eighth in the Western Conference with 14 games left to play. Even if the Pelicans were fully healthy, their chances to make the postseason would be virtually nonexistent. As is, Gentry’s team will essentially play for draft position over the next month.

In addition to risk of further injury, that’s another reason to shut Davis down now: New Orleans will earn more lottery balls the more it loses. Seems pretty simple, right? All things equal, Davis wouldn’t play another game for the Pelicans in 2015-16. But they aren’t – not even close.

After being named an All-Star starter and garnering First-Team postseason honors last year, Davis signed a mammoth extension in the Bayou that included a clause known as the “Derrick Rose Rule.” Under the CBA stipulation named in honor of the 2011 MVP, players coming off their rookie deals who ink maximum extensions are eligible to earn up to 30 percent of the salary cap instead of the normal 25 percent – as long as they start in two All-Star Games, earn All-NBA honors twice, or win the Maurice Podoloff Trophy.

Davis checked off half the necessary boxes in 2014-15, and expectations of his continued ascent up the league’s hierarchy made his qualification for the Rose Rule a foregone conclusion. But wholesale adjustments gleaned from a change on the sidelines and nightly lineup turnover have rendered his fourth professional season relatively underwhelming, preventing him from starting February’s All-Star Game and calling All-NBA candidacy into question.

Could awards voters still afford Davis an All-NBA nod? Absolutely. He’s been an elite player this season despite those labors, and additional playing time at center makes his case easier than if he could only be considered a forward. Regardless, this much is certain: Sitting out the next 14 games would not just weaken Davis’ All-NBA resumé, but in conjunction lessen his chance for Rose-Rule eligibility – and potentially keep his contract from reaching its $145 million limit.

That should be of no concern to Gentry whatsoever, of course. His focus should be on New Orleans’ future with this season basically over, and no factor looms larger to this organization’s success going forward than the health of its cornerstone. If this was solely the decision of the Pelicans’ front office and coaching staff, Davis would already be shelved. But it isn’t, and the opportunity for an extra $24 million would be tough to pass up for anyone no matter how much money he or she has already banked.

Needless to say, keep an eye on this situation going forward. It could have a major mitigating effect on Davis’ future either way.

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