Anthony Davis has agreed to a three-year, $186million max contract extension that’ll see him stay with the Los Angeles Lakers until 2028, as the 30-year-old lands the highest annual salary jump in NBA history.
The deal, which is worth a total of $270M-plus, was revealed by ESPN’s NBA insider Adrian Wojnarowski on Twitter on Friday.
Davis, who can either play as a power forward or center, will now be paid $62M a season.
He was owed $84M over the next two years prior to becoming eligible to sign the three-year extension on Friday, and Lakers manager Rob Pelinka and NBA super agent Rich Paul acted swiftly to complete the deal.
Davis is one of two star players on the Lakers, alongside LeBron James, and took LA to the Western Conference Finals this past season.
Anthony Davis – a one-time NBA champion in 2020 – is now set to be paid $62million per year
The 30-year-old was spotted sitting courtside at the WNBA All-Star game in Las Vegas in July
The Lakers were hopeful of re-signing Davis to a long term deal especially with LeBron James’ long-term NBA future being uncertain at 38 years of age
He moved to the West Coast from New Orleans in a blockbuster trade in 2019 and played an integral part in the Purple and Gold’s last championship roster in 2020, when the playoffs were played at Disney World in Orlando, Florida.
Davis averaged 26 points, 12.5 points and two blocks per game for the Lakers, while shooting a career-high 56 percent last season.
LA’s No. 3 is also a four-time All-NBA first-team player and an eight-time All-Star.
He’s averaged 25 points and two blocks in a season fives time since coming into the league as the first overall pick of the 2012 NBA Draft. That’s the third-highest total behind only Shaquille O’Neal and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, according to ESPN Stats and Information.
Davis’ career highlight, so far, is lifting the Larry O’Brien trophy after winning it all in 2020
In the 2022-23 NBA playoffs, Davis became the third Lakers player with 50 blocks in a postseason, behind only O’Neal and Abdul-Jabbar.
Signing Davis, a native of Chicago, to an extension now gives the Lakers one star to build around, given the probability that 38-year-old LeBron James doesn’t have a long future with the team.
However, the player has never has played a full season with the Lakers, slowed by a variety of injuries. The 62 games played in 2019-20 are his Los Angeles high.
In 660 career games (653 starts) with New Orleans (2012-19) and the Lakers, Davis has averages of 24.0 points and 10.4 rebounds per game.
He was spotted sitting courtside at the WNBA All-Star game in Las Vegas on July 15.
