Kendrick Perkins rips Steve Kerr over criticism of Anthony Davis trade

Anthony Davis’ midseason trade request was one of the biggest stories of the NBA season, and even though the Pelicans were able to revitalize their team with a blockbuster offseason in response the Davis situation, the saga has recently been branded a “real problem” that threatens the NBA. Golden State Warriors coach Steve Kerr called out Davis during an appearance on the Warriors Insider Podcast, and said that Davis needed to honor the contract that he signed and play out his days in New Orleans before leaving in free agency.

Via CBS Sports:

“That’s a real problem that the league has to address and that the players have to be careful with. When you sign on that dotted line, you owe your effort and your play to that team, to that city, to the fans. And then it’s completely your right to leave as a free agent. But if you sign the contract, then you should be bound to that contract.

…. If you come to an agreement with the team that, hey, it’s probably best for us to part ways, that’s one thing. But the Davis stuff was really kind of groundbreaking — and hopefully not a trend, because it’s bad for the league.”

ESPN analyst and 2008 NBA champion Kendrick Perkins sounded off on Kerr’s take on Wednesday with a fiery string of tweets. Perkins argued that Kerr ignored other instances of players switching teams due to “hidden agendas,” made the point that Davis did the Pelicans a favor by allowing them to recoup assets instead of walking away for nothing, and questioned whether Kevin Durant’s decision to join the 73-9 Warriors was “great for the league.”

To recap: Anthony Davis, a top-5 player in the NBA and a perennial MVP candidate, largely outperformed his contract for seven seasons in New Orleans, but decided that the organization was not capable of building a contender in a league dominated by Steve Kerr’s superteam. Davis requested a trade publicly and stated that he’d be willing to go anywhere, but the Lakers ended up with the best trade offer after lucking into the No. 4 pick in the NBA draft.

Davis’ exit was messy, for sure, but he also can’t be held responsible for the Pelicans playing the Lakers at the trade deadline and choosing to keep him around until the offseason. The Pelicans, in the end, were able to build a young, exciting team with major potential, while a superstar landed in one of the NBA’s biggest markets. That’s a net positive for the league, I’d say.