Report: Anthony Davis to opt out, re-sign with Lakers

Anthony Davis
(Kim Klement/USA TODAY Sports)

We may still be celebrating the Los Angeles Lakers’ 17th NBA championship but it’s never too late to look towards the future. The most important decision of the offseason belongs to big man Anthony Davis who has an option for the final year of his contract. Although Kawhi Leonard bucked the overall trend last year by leaving the Toronto Raptors, it’s very seldom that a superstar wins a championship with a team only to leave the next year in free agency. Anthony Davis apparently won’t be doing that.

According to The Athletic’s Shams Charania, Davis will be opting out of that final year once he is eligible to do so. However, the Defensive Player of the Year runner up is planning to re-sign with the Lakers on a longer contract, per Charania.

This is of course not very surprising. Davis serves to earn much more money by entering free agency this offseason to sign a bigger deal over a longer amount of time. The question will be whether he will sign a full five-year max contract or if he will choose to sign a shorter deal to enter free agency once he hits the ten-year career benchmark that allows him to earn a bigger max deal the next time he hits free agency. If Davis is planning on maximizing his earnings, that would seem to be the likely scenario. No matter what decision he makes, the Lakers will be more than happy to comply and keep their All-NBA superstar in LA.

Look for more news over the coming weeks as Charania says Klutch Sports agent Rich Paul will meet with the Lakers organization over the coming weeks to iron out whatever deal is best for both the team and Davis. Whatever deal it is, Lakers fans should take great joy in knowing that Davis will at least be back for next year to try and win back-to-back championships alongside LeBron James.

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