Report: Lakers Felt Anthony Davis 'Could Never Truly Be Counted on as a Top Option'

The Los Angeles Lakers were reportedly discontented with Anthony Davis' performance as the team's leading scorer prior to trading him.

The Athletic's Sam Amick called "alpha" a "key word" in explaining why the Lakers dealt Davis to the Dallas Mavericks in exchange for Luka Dončić.

"While Davis had no shortage of fans within the Lakers' walls, there was also a strong sense that he wasn't "1-A" material," Amick wrote.

Amick continued:

"League sources say there were concerns about his durability and availability and a belief that he could never truly be counted on as a top option in the future. And while his approval rating was high, it had not been forgotten how — in those days before the decision was made to fire former coach Darvin Ham in early May 2024 — the known threat of a possible Davis trade request loomed so large when it came to their internal calculus. The pressure on that front had been rising for quite some time."

The Lakers also traded Max Christie and a first-rounder to pick up Dončić alongside Maxi Kleber and Markieff Morris in a three-team deal that also involved the Utah Jazz, ESPN's Shams Charania reported late Saturday night.

Amick had previously reported in an appearance on the Rich Eisen Show last May that the fear of Davis asking for a trade had influenced the Lakers' decision to fire Ham after the 2023-24 season.

He said at the time that the Lakers "know, like everybody else, that AD has a history of having asked for trades."

Davis previously requested a trade from the New Orleans Pelicans before getting traded to the Lakers in 2019.

Heading into his sixth season in Los Angeles, Davis still remained a key part of both the Lakers' offense and defense. He had led the Lakers with 25.7 points, 11.9 rebounds and 2.1 blocks per game this season while missing just five games prior to the trade.

Those five missed games have included the last two contests, during which he was sidelined with injury. In his absence the Lakers' defense coalesced, and LeBron James stepped up, to lead Los Angeles to wins over the struggling Washington Wizards and the contending New York Knicks.

That latest injury— an abdominal strain the team announced Wednesday would sideline Davis for at least a week— isn't the only issue Davis has been dealing with. He had also been playing through left foot plantar fasciitis and right calf muscle discomfort, as reported by ESPN's Dave McMenamin.

Dončić's own season has meanwhile been derailed by injury in Dallas. He last played on Dec. 25 before he was sidelined with a left calf strain on a non-contact injury.

That missed time is particularly concerning given Dončić's history of injuries to the same calf. He missed part of training camp and preseason with a left calf injury and previously had his 2022 postseason cut short by a left calf strain.

Potentially in part of Dončić's age— he turns 26 in February, whereas Davis is celebrating his 32nd birthday in March— it looks like the Lakers are still counting on him being the more durable option going forward despite his calf issues.