If you already started dreaming about Anthony Davis returning to the Los Angeles Lakers after NBA insider Chris Haynes said he thinks there's a "good chance" the center will be on a new team by the start of next season, hold up. AD might be leaning toward staying with the Wizards after they won the draft lottery on Sunday, and that's actually a good thing for LA.
The idea of bringing Davis back is better than actually going through with it, and the main reason for that is his injury history. Yes, in his last full season with the Lakers in 2023-24, he played a career-high 76 games.
Since then, though, he played 51 games combined for Los Angeles and Dallas in 2024-25. Davis played only nine games for the Mavericks after the Luka Dončić trade, making that end of the deal look even worse for the team.
Davis played 20 games for Dallas this year before the deadline trade that sent him to the Wizards, where he didn't play a game.
Understandably, at 33, AD should want to be somewhere he can win another championship, and Washington isn't high on the list of teams that could do that next season. The Wizards' odds look better now than they did, especially if they use their pick to draft AJ Dybantsa.
Anthony Davis could decide to stay with Wizards after draft lottery
With Davis and Trae Young (if the former stays), Washington has a mix of All-Star-level veteran talent and promising youngsters. The Wizards could actually make some noise in the East next season, and I'm talking about maybe even securing an automatic playoff berth.
Is the idea of what Washington can be next season enough to make AD more open to the idea of at least starting the season in the nation's capital? It very well could be.
You might be thinking that even if that's the case, Davis would still rather go to a team like LA, right?
Well, first off, the Lakers would have to be interested in a reunion, and his injury history and contract should keep them away from that, no matter how much he meant to the organization (and still does). Putting that aside, he could prefer to be in purple and gold (or with another contender), but he might be intrigued enough to see how things play out in D.C.
There was never a guarantee that Davis would request a trade this offseason, but if that's the direction he was leaning, Sunday's lottery might've changed that. And you know what? The Lakers are probably better off for that, rather than being tempted to bring him back.
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