The hardworking big man agreed to a three-year deal with the Portland Trail Blazers worth $20 million, per Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports, a major pay bump from the $981,084 he made this season in Los Angeles.
According to Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News, Davis acknowledged his appreciation for the Lakers and would have liked an extended run, if not for a matter of timing.
“They wanted me to come back,” Davis said. “But I felt like this was the right decision for me. I didn’t really want to wait around.”
Portland pounced on Davis as the Lakers were waiting on a decision from former Trail Blazer LaMarcus Aldridge, who ultimately agreed to join the San Antonio Spurs on a four-year $80 million contract, according to Wojnarowski.
Meanwhile, other options were dwindling away as other top free agents such as DeAndre Jordan and Greg Monroe played the ritualistic game of musical chairs. Finally, on July 4, the Lakers reached a trade agreement to acquire Roy Hibbert from the Indiana Pacers.
As noted by Mike Bresnahan of the Los Angeles Times, the Lakers will send a future second-round draft pick to Indiana and will absorb the final year of Hibbert’s contract at $15.5 million.
Perhaps L.A.’s torturous process of chasing top prospects and watching them slip away was simply part of doing business in the highly competitive NBA—other teams also got caught up in the logjam. But the collateral damage included the loss of Davis, a player who fully understood the business side of things, and took care of his own end.
“It was a tough thing,” Davis said, per Medina. “But it’s about finding the right deal at the right time and getting the financial part ...
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Los Angeles Lakers
