Pelica Debrief
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Debrief Discussion: Anthony Davis

By Brendon Kleen

Oct 12, 2015; Chicago, IL, USA; New Orleans Pelicans head coach Alvin Gentry and New Orleans Pelicans forward Anthony Davis (23) watch their team during their pre-season game against the Chicago Bulls at the United Center. Mandatory Credit: Matt Marton-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 12, 2015; Chicago, IL, USA; New Orleans Pelicans head coach Alvin Gentry and New Orleans Pelicans forward Anthony Davis (23) watch their team during their pre-season game against the Chicago Bulls at the United Center. Mandatory Credit: Matt Marton-USA TODAY Sports /
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Mar 20, 2016; New Orleans, LA, USA; New Orleans Pelicans forward Anthony Davis sits on the bench during the first quarter of a game against the Los Angeles Clippers at the Smoothie King Center. It was announced prior to the game that Anthony Davis would miss the remainder of the season with a left knee injury. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 20, 2016; New Orleans, LA, USA; New Orleans Pelicans forward Anthony Davis sits on the bench during the first quarter of a game against the Los Angeles Clippers at the Smoothie King Center. It was announced prior to the game that Anthony Davis would miss the remainder of the season with a left knee injury. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports /

2. Where does AD rank among all-time Pelicans greats? Where does he rank within the league’s hierarchy right now?

Preston: There’s no question he is already the second greatest player the New Orleans Hornets/Pelicans have had in their brief history.  CP3’s Pelicans history includes four all star appearances, a First, Second, and Third team All-NBA appearance, First and Second team All-Defense, a Rookie of the Year trophy, and a spot on the All-NBA Rookie First team. He managed a 10-13 playoff record including a heart-breaking loss in game seven of the second round in the New Orleans Arena.

Davis’ history includes three All-Star appearances, one All-NBA First team appearance, one All-NBA Defensive Second Team appearance, a spot on the All-NBA Rookie First team, and a second-place finish in Rookie of the Year voting to Damian Lillard. As you can see, he is already close behind our former franchise star, and at 23 years old and four years remaining on his contract, we can only hope/assume he ascends the Wake Forest star even before that puppy runs out in 2019.  

Rick: Is there a ton of ground between him and Chris Paul? That’s the real question. He’s easily in the top two. It’s only a matter of time before he eclipses what Paul achieved as a Pelican, so long as the team makes the playoffs once more and AD reaches the top five in MVP voting again.

As far as the league’s concerned, the MVP odds show him right in the Top Five, with the likelihood of most ranking him in the Top Ten Talents. While he needs a major jump to reach where Kevin Durant, LeBron James, Stephen Curry and Russell Westbrook are, It’s hard to find someone in the league who makes more of an impact on their team. If he can keep up the stretch of basketball he’s been in since his entry into the league, he could stay in that top five conversation until his 30’s…which is still a ways away.

Nathan: Chris Paul is still the greatest Hornet…errr…Pelican. How to approach that always confuses me. As much as I love Davis, Chris Paul had a large emotional pull for me due to the circumstances surrounding his arrival on the team. My personal considerations aside, he was the best point guard in the league for multiple seasons in New Orleans. Davis could pass him up this season with an MVP caliber season.

In the league, I put Davis in the top 3. I know, I know, that is ridiculous. Player X, Y and Z averaged more points and led teams to the playoffs blah blah blah. I think the best way to identify which player is truly the best in the league is to evaluate who you would want to start a hypothetical team with. For me, it would go Lebron James, Steph Curry and Anthony Davis.

Rory: For greatest Pelican ever, it is unquestionably a two-man race between Paul and Davis. However, I do want to throw out an honorable mention to two-time All Star David West, forever and always my favorite Hornet from the 2007-11 era. West never played fewer than 70 games (and played 81 games in 2009-10!) in New Orleans, and he remains the franchise’s all-time leading scorer. It is safe to assume Davis will eventually hold that title, but I feel that the current record-holder needs a tip of the hat.

As far as MVP voting, I’m not sure Davis is as far away as some might think. LeBron James will continue to take more and more time off in the regular season, especially now that he knows he can cede leadership to Kyrie Irving. Durant and Curry will cannibalize each other, and I’m not convinced OKC will be good enough for Westbrook to seriously crack the conversation. The same could be said about New Orleans, and Kawhi Leonard will most certainly be a strong contender as well, but I think Davis will be closer than anyone realizes.

Drew: This conversation is easily whittled down to two players, Chris Paul and Anthony Davis (although I do appreciate Rory’s homage to David West).

During their respective time in New Orleans, each player was arguably the best player at their position, earning heaps of accolades each, including multiple All-NBA and All-Defensive teams. Paul and Davis were both huge for the franchise and both were absolutely spectacular players, but I think the scale tips in Paul’s favor due to one factor: playoff success. While Paul’s 10-13 playoff record in NOLA isn’t exactly stellar, the fact of the matter is he consistently got the Pelicans (Hornets? whatever) to the playoffs and managed to win a couple of series. I think that Davis’ case could be helped by some success in the postseason, but an MVP award would obviously help him to supplant Paul as well.

Brendon: We’ll probably be exploring all-time Pelicans sometime soon, so I’ll save my elongated list for later (spoiler: I’m a big fan of PJ Brown’s work). However, it’s clear that he’s close behind Chris Paul for historical impact on the franchise. That mid-2000s stretch has an emotional tug that this Pelicans team hasn’t achieved yet, but AD appears ready to make the most out of his second contract in a way Chris Paul never could. Hey, I heare you. Jrue, Asik, and Buddy have nothing on West, Chandler, and Peja. But your whispers are becoming ever more faint, friend.

As far as his place among the league’s greats goes, I’ve got LeBron, Steph, KD, Russ, CP3, Kawhi, Lowry and then AD, off the top of my head. The league is in a fascinating state right now wherein four of its top twenty players are on one team, and there are several second-tier superstars toiling on teams a step away from championship contention (DeMarcus Cousins, James Harden, Paul Millsap, Paul George). AD has the potential to leapfrog a few of these guys as they get older and he reaches his apex.

Next: Is there a clear path to a ring?

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