Lakers Rumors: Anthony Davis Expected to Sign New Contract Before Camp by Insider

Heading into the final guaranteed season of his contract, Anthony Davis could have a new deal with the Los Angeles Lakers before the start of training camp.

On the latest episode of The Lowe Post podcast (h/t Zach Stevens of Lakers Daily), ESPN's Dave McMenamin said he's "fairly confident" the two sides will come to terms on an extension at some point this summer:

"Anthony Davis in Rob [Pelinka's] estimation is someone that has represented the Lakers really well, citing how he played through his foot injury last year as a major reason why they won a championship in 2020 and he wants to continue to have Anthony Davis as a Laker. ... I am not too concerned about how this thing plays out, whether it's the max amount of years or max amount of dollars are reached, that remains to be seen and that will be figured out between Rich Paul and Rob Pelinka and Jeanie Buss.

"But where things stand right now, I expect some sort of an agreement to be reached. A lot of it is one, recognizing that Anthony Davis as a trade chip, there's no way to replicate the value of what he brings to the court combined with LeBron James when he's healthy, you just won't. It's absolutely impossible.

"You also recognize that LeBron turning 39 years old and entering Year 21 has a limited window, so then to try to coalesce with a new group if you were to find this beautiful trade for Anthony Davis, that's follied, you could be wasting what's left of LeBron and then beyond that, listen, we know the business of this league. If there's no extension offered, what do you do? You apply pressure the other way and say I want out. So I'm fairly confident that Anthony Davis will come into training camp with an extended deal."

There have been conflicting reports from McMenamin about the Lakers' interest in extending Davis this summer.

During a June 5 appearance ESPNLA 710's Sedano & Kap (via RealGM) show, McMenamin said he didn't think the Lakers were "going to be in a position to be interested in a long-term extension for him this summer."

McMenamin's ESPN colleague, Brian Windhorst, said that same day on Get Up the Lakers "do not want [Davis] messing with free agency in 2024" and re-signing him is a "primary offseason thing" for the organization.

Davis is not eligible to sign an extension until Aug. 4, but if he chooses to do so, it would require him to opt in to his $43.2 million salary for 2023-24 and add a maximum of $167.6 million over three years to the deal.

The total value of an extension would be $251.4 million over five years and keep him under contract through the 2027-28 season.

It's understandable why the Lakers might have some hesitation about making that type of commitment, both in terms of years and money, to Davis. He will be 35 years old in the final season of a five-year extension and has only played 132 regular-season games over the past three years combined.

Even though LeBron James has committed to playing next season, there's also the long-term question of what the Lakers will be when he eventually retires.

Davis remains a dominant presence on the court when he plays. The eight-time All-Star averaged 25.9 points, 12.5 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 2.0 blocks per game in 56 appearances last season.

The Lakers have the makings of a top team in the Western Conference next season after bringing back Austin Reaves, Rui Hachimura and signing Gabe Vincent, Taurean Prince, Jaxson Hayes and Cam Reddish in free agency.

As long as Davis and James are healthy for most of the season, the Lakers have enough depth and talent to compete with anyone in the NBA.