Anthony Davis says he's played through torn labrum for 3 years
The New Orleans Pelicans may have ended All-Star power forward Anthony Davis' season on Sunday, but it appears now it's something they likely should've done long ago.
Related: Davis confirms he'll miss Rio Olympics, expects to be out 4-5 months
Davis said on Monday that he's been playing through a torn labrum for the last three years, according to ESPN's Justin Verrier. Davis was reportedly told by the Pelicans he would need to have his labrum repaired "at some point," but waited until undergoing knee surgery to have it fixed.
If true, Davis will have played three of his first four seasons with a major injury, a ridiculous thought given his All-NBA-level production.
Davis said he's been wearing an Alignmed shirt underneath his jersey in order to help stabilize his shoulder.
— Justin Verrier (@JustinVerrier) March 21, 2016
"It’s unfortunate, but he’s got an issue with his shoulder that he’s played with the whole season," head coach Alvin Gentry told Jim Eichenhofer of nba.com. "It’s amazing when people talk about him being soft or whatever; they don’t understand that he’s played through a situation with his shoulder the entire season."
Related: Will Anthony Davis' season-ending injuries cost him $24M bonus?
Despite being outside of the playoff race for almost the entirety of the season, Davis has missed only a handful of games for New Orleans, averaging 24.3 points, 10.3 rebounds, two blocks, and posting a player efficiency rating of 25.21 in 61 contests.
The Kentucky product has averaged 20.8 points, 9.7 rebounds, and shot 51.6 percent from the field in 260 career games.