The early rumors involving a potential Anthony Davis trade pointed to the star forward not having interest in the Boston Celtics as a long-term home. Apparently, that wasn’t quite the case and Davis cleared that up during NBA All-Star weekend. As Media Day for the All-Star Game got underway, it wasn’t surprising that one of the first questions the New Orleans Pelicans big man was asked involved his potential trade.
And as ESPN’s Tim Bontemps revealed, Davis didn’t hold back when addressing the topic of the Celtics by stating that they are on indeed on his wish list of potential teams.
Anthony Davis is asked about the Boston Celtics not being on his list. “They are on my list.”
Bontemps also quoted Davis as saying that “they were never not on my list,” a statement he repeated multiple times.
It’s an eye-opening comment from the NBA star, whose request to be moved from the Pelicans grabbed the bulk of the attention prior to the NBA trade deadline. While the team opted against shipping him out of town before the deadline, instead choosing to wait for the offseason, a big reason was believed to be due to the Celtics.
Celtics’ Jayson Tatum Key to Anthony Davis Trade
It’s been said multiple times that one reason why the Pelicans decided against trading Davis before the end of the year was so they could receive a formal offer from the Celtics. Due to the Rose Rule, Boston can’t acquire Davis via trade and have he and Kyrie Irving on the roster this season, and it can’t happen until the guard becomes a free agent.
But as Fletcher Mackel of WDSU revealed previously, the Pelicans have an interest in Jayson Tatum and believe they can land him in a potential deal for Davis. This is certainly realistic and a deal with Tatum should have a serious chance at panning out in the offseason, but it’s unknown exactly what the Celtics could be willing to offer at this point.
Can Celtics Top Lakers’ Huge Offers?
This is the million dollar question, but if Danny Ainge and company do opt to go all-in on Davis, which is expected, it will certainly be a huge trade offer. Especially considering there was chatter that the Los Angeles Lakers offered Lonzo Ball, Brandon Ingram, Kyle Kuzma, Josh Hart, Ivica Zubac, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and two first-round picks.
That deal was obviously declined by the Pelicans, and it was later revealed by ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski that they wanted a “historic haul of picks” which includes four first-rounders.
The Pelicans haven’t countered the Lakers’ offers but do have expectations that Johnson will overwhelm them with young players and a historic haul of draft picks. To New Orleans, that means four first-round and second-round picks as part of a trade package, league sources told ESPN.
For good measure, Davis did confirm that both the Lakers and New York Knicks are on his list of preferred destinations, calling those reports “true,” as Mike Singer of the Denver Post revealed. The offers from Los Angeles will look different during the offseason due to players who are set to become free agents, but they will still have little trouble creating one of the best packages of the bunch.
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Anthony Davis Trade Talk: Pelicans Star Says Celtics Are on Wish List