NEW ORLEANS — Anthony Davis punctuated his activity at the Pelicans’ shootaround on Thursday morning by spotting up from the corner, where he took pass after pass from an assistant coach. Davis sank six of his final eight attempts, all from beyond the 3-point line. His release was effortless, the ball traveling in a pleasant parabola.

It should be noted that it was only practice, and nobody was defending him. But maybe, just maybe, Davis was offering a glimpse of the future, and the future looked ominous for everyone else.

“I mean, it’s already pretty much impossible to guard him,” the Pelicans’ Ryan Anderson said. “If he were to add that 3-pointer?”

Anderson let the question hang there for half a beat, as if the answer was obvious to anyone familiar with Davis and his vast assemblage of skills. Davis has a midrange game. He handles the ball with ease. He can post up defenders. And he is listed as carrying 220 pounds on a 6-foot-10 frame, his limbs as long as extension cords.