Rich Paul says Lakers weren’t worried about Anthony Davis’ injury history in extension talks

It took very little time for the Lakers and Anthony Davis to agree to a contract extension. On the same day he was officially extension-eligible, the two sides agreed to a max contract extension.

Ultimately, there’s very little to deliberate on Davis’ part when the Lakers offer the max. But on the Lakers’ side, there was perhaps some internal deliberation given his history of struggling to stay on the court.

However, in speaking to Mark Medina of Sportskeeda, Klutch Sports CEO, and agent of Davis, Rich Paul says the Lakers never expressed any worry about Davis’ injuries in recent seasons.

“They understand AD and his work ethic has shown,” Klutch Sports CEO Rich Paul told Sportskeeda on Friday. “He has some injuries, but it wasn’t due to him not working. It’s not like he came into camp overweight or showed any laziness. There were just fluke things. That happens in the game.”

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“[The Lakers] weren’t caught up in that,” Paul said about Davis’ injury history. “When you look at their style of play and what AD can bring to the table, it’s just something that was important to the team.”

Davis has had some tough breaks and a lot of unluckiness with his injuries. With very few exceptions, many of his recent injuries have involved landing on someone’s foot or a longstanding bone spur leading to a new injury.

And as Paul said, Davis has done what has been asked of him when it comes to being in physical shape. He bulked up to play center, slimmed back down, and always keeps chugging along.

In the process, he’s produced some incredible performances in Los Angeles. Sometimes it has shown up in the regular season, often it has shown up in the postseason. Time and time again, Davis has delivered when healthy.

The Lakers saw it all play out, rightfully acknowledged AD’s dedication, and rewarded him handsomely for it. Now, here’s to some luck going his way on the injury front in the coming years.

You can follow Jacob on Twitter at @JacobRude.