For the past few seasons, LeBron James has received his fair share of rejections from fellow superstars, who declined to team up with him.
But Anthony Davis is the rare exception after he publicly forced his way out of the New Orleans Pelicans for a chance to play with James and the Los Angeles Lakers.
“Yeah, I mean, we’ve been friends for a long time,” Davis told The Athletic’s Joe Vardon about why he wanted to pair up with James.
That friendship was likely forged when the two won a gold medal for Team USA at the 2012 London Olympics. At the same time, Davis and James share the same agent, Rich Paul of Klutch Sports Group.
“We’re excited to play with each other on a team, go out here and compete,” Davis added later. “It’s something that’s special and it’s something that we definitely want to make sure we take advantage of while we’re both here.”
James only has three more years left on his contract, one which he signed last year as a free agent when Magic Johnson was still the Lakers’ president of basketball operations. Davis, on the other hand, will likely opt out of his current deal next summer to become a free agent, but he intends to sign a new deal with the Lakers when that time comes.
Two years ago, despite coming off of a Finals appearance with James months earlier, Kyrie Irving asked to be traded from the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Last summer, Paul George could have gone to L.A. by signing a contract with the Lakers. But he spurned a meeting with them and instead decided to re-sign with the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Just a few days ago, it was Kawhi Leonard’s turn to reject an offer to play for the Lakers despite the opportunity to be heavy favorites to win the title for years to come.
Davis, however, believes in James’ ability to accomplish something that he hasn’t, which is a huge reason why he wanted to go to L.A. and join his friend in the first place.
“Obviously there are some other great teams around the league, but winning a championship is not easy,” Davis said. “It’s very difficult. He knows that. I haven’t been down that path, but hopefully this year he can lead me down that path and we can win.”
Since winning is his goal, Davis came to the right place. The Lakers have 16 championships and James has three titles of his own. Davis has a chance to win his first next season if everything falls into place.
Hopefully, the combination of Davis and James will not only add to the Lakers’ championship banners, but will also start a dynasty that will extend for years to come.
