“I’m Listening to a Team Like Warriors”: Kendrick Perkins Sends Message to Anthony Davis After High Praise For Wizards Star

It's been a while since we last saw Anthony Davis take on the hardwood. His last game was on Jan. 8, his final game with the Dallas Mavericks before being traded to the Washington Wizards on Feb. 5. Since then, AD hasn't been able to return and has somehow been branded as broken goods.

Earlier this summer, the Golden State Warriors reportedly pursued Davis in a trade to make the situation more enticing for LeBron James. However, after careful deliberation, the Warriors didn't see a positive future with AD on the roster. Former NBA player Kendrick Perkins believes otherwise and called out the Warriors while praising Davis.

"If I'm AD, I'm listening to everything and all the disrespect," Perkins said on NBA Today. "I'm listening to a team like the Warriors who could use an Anthony Davis and say that they're not willing to leverage their future, leverage a lot of their stuff to get AD."

"AD, if you're watching this, I believe that you're still one of the best players in the NBA," Perkins said directly. "You're still, when healthy, an All-NBA, All-Defense-caliber player. I believe that when it's all said and done at the end of the season, Anthony Davis, we're gonna mention his name in the MVP conversation."

Looking at Davis' last healthy campaign, the 2023-24 season, when he played 76 regular-season games, he averaged 24.7 points, 12.6 rebounds, 3.5 assists, 2.3 blocks, and 1.2 steals, while shooting 55.6% from the field.

The interesting part is that even when dealing with injuries, Davis still looks impressive. Last season, after only playing 20 games, his numbers were still on par. AD averaged 20.4 points, 11.1 rebounds, 2.8 assists, 1.6 blocks, and 1.1 steals, while shooting 50.6% from the field. Not too far apart from his performance in the 2023-24 season.

Having said that, while others might question Perkins' statements regarding Davis, the numbers show that the big man is still very much capable of being one of the most dominant players in the league, especially when healthy.

Anthony Davis Allegedly Still Tied to LeBron James' Free Agency

The league is slowly growing impatient with LeBron James. It's been nearly a month since James declared that he was going to test free agency. Since then, everyone has been anticipating where the King would end up.

However, despite so many close calls happening, including when he reportedly nearly signed with the Golden State Warriors, he has yet to make his decision.

According to Yahoo Sports writer Kevin O'Connor, Anthony Davis may still be tied to James' decision. O'Connor also noted Kyrie Irving as a possible cause.

"Sources believe LeBron James is slow-playing his decision to see if any of his suitors can find a way to land Anthony Davis or Kyrie Irving. The problem is that AD and Kyrie don't seem available for trade," O'Connor wrote on X.

Previously, Davis was nearly traded to the Warriors as part of the team's plan to reel LeBron in. However, that never came to fruition after Golden State reassessed its future with AD in the picture.

As of this writing, the Washington Wizards have strongly expressed their intention to keep Davis around. Meaning to say, the likelihood of AD reuniting with the King is low.