NBA Trade Bait: Where Will Anthony Davis Land?

Anthony “The Brow” Davis has been a highly sought-after player ever since his freshman year at the University of Kentucky. After a spectacular “one and done” year, where the Wildcats won the NCAA Division 1 Championship, Davis declared for the NBA draft. 

Davis was selected first overall in the 2012 NBA draft by the New Orleans Pelicans. Each year in the NBA, Davis got better and better. Just this past year, Davis finished third in the NBA MVP voting; finishing behind James Harden and LeBron James. 

The Pelicans haven’t had any real success, despite Davis putting up his dominant 29 points, 13 rebounds, and 2.6 blocks per game average this season. With just two playoff appearances since Davis was drafted by New Orleans, Davis has become frustrated with the direction of the franchise and has requested a trade from New Orleans. 

Agent Rich Paul has notified the New Orleans Pelicans that All-NBA forward Anthony Davis has no intention of signing a contract extension if and when presented and that he has requested a trade, Paul told ESPN on Monday.

— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) January 28, 2019

Davis is a free agent in 2021, which makes Davis a potential rental to whichever team manages to trade for him. The Pelicans have a steep asking price for their superstar center, but that asking price is justified; considering how extraordinary of a player Davis is. Depending on where Davis is traded, it will be worth noting to see if he will agree to sign an extension after the 2020 season. 

Currently, the teams in the mix for Davis are the Los Angeles Lakers, New York Knicks, Los Angeles Clippers, Milwaukee Bucks, and the Boston Celtics. However, the Celtics have been informed that currently, Davis is unwilling to sign with them long term if he were to be traded to Boston. It is to be seen if Danny Ainge can make Davis change his mind. As we all know, money talks and Davis will certainly earn himself a max contract wherever he goes. The Clippers and Bucks haven’t had many formal talks about a potential trade, but the interest still remains there.

The Lakers have made the most contact with the Pelicans, in regards to the availability of Davis. New Orleans has a hefty asking price and since the Pelicans and Lakers are in the same conference, that could also contribute to their asking price. It would be smart of the Pelicans to receive as much as they could from the Lakers if the face of their franchise is being moved to a conference rival.

Pels are waiting on Lakers to overwhelm them w/ an historic haul of picks. To Nola, that means Lakers offering 4 first-round and second-round picks as part of a Davis package. Pels want to be compensated – perhaps even overcompensated – to even consider a deal with LA now. https://t.co/Ft8rfe9EBZ

— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) February 5, 2019

The current offer on the table for Davis from the Lakers includes multiple young players, multiple draft picks, and salary cap relief. The players potentially included are Lonzo Ball, Brandon Ingram, and Kyle Kuzma, multiple first and second round picks, along with the Lakers absorbing the remaining $12.7 million of Solomon Hill’s contract in the 2019-2020 season.

The Lakers have offered a new package to New Orleans that includes multiple young players, multiple draft picks and Pelicans salary cap relief for Anthony Davis, league sources tell ESPN. The offer appears to move closer to the objectives that the Pelicans are pursuing in a deal.

— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) February 4, 2019

If the Lakers managed to acquire Davis, it would be huge. LeBron would get the fellow superstar he needs to bring another championship back to Los Angeles. With the Lakers willingness to spend and many players already wanting to join forces with LeBron, acquiring Davis would set them over the top. LeBron James has already had conversations with Davis about joining the team so it’s to be seen if they are able to team up in the near future.

The New York Knicks are an interesting trade destination for Anthony Davis, as well. The Knicks have a very young team, that could interest the Pelicans as they’ll look to rebuild if Davis is traded. Despite trading their main trade bait piece, Kristaps Porzingis already, the Knicks have a potential top three draft pick this upcoming draft, along with multiple future first round draft picks. The Pelicans were looking for four future first-round draft picks from the Lakers. 

This abundance of draft picks that the Knicks possess could be something to look out for. The Knicks also have multiple young players such as Kevin Knox, Alonzo Trier, Mitchell Robinson, and Dennis Smith Jr., whom could all be involved in this trade along with the future draft picks. If the Knicks manage to attain the first overall draft pick this year, watch out. They could be in for a huge splash in the free agent market, along with one of the top five best players in the league. 

New Orleans rejected the Knicks on a Porzingis offer recently, and likely don’t have the assets to gain the Pelicans’ interest unless they defy the odds on a 12 percent chance in the draft lottery to get the No. 1 overall pick in the June draft.

— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) February 4, 2019

The Boston Celtics are another team who have had talks with the Pelicans in regards to Anthony Davis. The Celtics have an abundance of draft picks as well, along with a budding star in Jayson Tatum. The Pelicans reportedly really like Tatum and believe that they can build around him, along with other young players likely to be involved in the trade. 

Pairing Davis with Kyrie Irving would be a real force to reckon with in the Eastern Conference. Irving has displayed a lot of veteran leadership this season and Davis has been leading his team for years now. If Davis and Irving were to be paired together, it would put the Celtics at very good odds at winning the conference. Both Irving and Davis have a lot of experience, which would be great as they would look to mentor the young Celtics team.

However, Davis appears to not want to go to the Celtics. The disloyalty they showed former Celtic, Isaiah Thomas, following his injury during the 2017 season has left a bad taste in the mouth of Davis and his family. Due to the actions of the organization and being disloyal to a player who left everything on the court, it showed how the Celtics can turn their backs on their players. That’s left a negative impression on Davis and his family and has resulted in Davis being currently unwilling to sign an extension if traded to Boston.

As the trade deadline approaches, it is to be seen which team will be able to land Davis. However, it has been widely speculated that a trade will most likely not be made by the time the deadline approaches. The trade is much more likely to occur during the summer around the draft. That way, the Pelicans could see which picks they could potentially be obtaining and it’ll be around the time when teams would have more money to spend on extending Davis’ contract, due to the salary cap increases by the Collective Bargaining Agreement.