NBA Trade Talk: Anthony Davis Won’t Join Lakers This Season, But Here Is Who LA Is Willing To Give Up
Until the day that Anthony Davis either signs or refuses the Supermax deal offered to him by the New Orleans Pelicans, the neverending reports will continue. There are many who believe he will eventually end up as a member of the Boston Celtics or the Los Angeles Lakers. With the 2019 NBA trade deadline approaching, some of the analysts are feeling it is less and less likely that AD will be a Laker this season.
As of this writing, the Pelicans are 21-24 after losing a tightly-contested game against the Golden State Warriors. They are a mere three games out of the Western Conference playoffs, and that eighth spot is currently held by the Los Angeles Lakers who are 25-21 and struggling without an injured LeBron James.
With the Pelicans finally fully healthy and playing better, it’s possible that Davis will not end up being traded this season. On last Friday’s episode of Scoop B Radio, Jason McIntyre of FS1 stated that AD is not going anywhere this season.
“I’m going to go ahead and say ‘no’ on Anthony Davis this year.
“Well, there’s no way they’re trading him this season. I mean, yeah…I would say 0 percent chance of that happening. If they abandon, just move the franchise to Seattle if you’re going to trade Anthony Davis mid-season. I mean they would be fools, I don’t think they would do that.”
If a trade for Anthony Davis to go anywhere else doesn’t happen this season, the Pelicans will offer him the Supermax deal this summer. Should Davis sign it, all of this trade talk will go away. If he refuses it, though, the Pels will have no choice but to trade him and the Lakers will pounce.
On the Kyle Kuzma front: Lakers will “try to hold on to Kuz for dear life,” I’m told.
“But when it really comes down to it, the Lakers are ready to deal anyone, outside of LeBron.” https://t.co/1t53r97ftG
— ? Brandon “Scoop B” Robinson (@ScoopB) January 11, 2019
McIntyre said that if a trade for Anthony Davis has to happen, the Lakers will need to give up a lot of their roster. He stated that they’d have to give up Brandon Ingram, Kyle Kuzma, and Lonzo Ball to acquire the future Hall of Famer, but then, who would they have left?
“Anthony Davis, hey, looks around [and says]: ‘So what, who is it going to be in LA? Me, LeBron, and KCP? Ah, Rondo?’ Is that, that good?”
Scoop B confirmed that the Lakers aren’t overly attached to anyone on their roster except for LeBron James. That means every single person on the roster except for LBJ could be had in a trade if it’s for someone such as Anthony Davis.
The New Orleans Pelicans have stated time and time again that they will not trade away Anthony Davis for any reason or at any time. If Davis turns down the Supermax deal, though, a trade will be necessary so they don’t lose him without getting anything in return. With the NBA trade deadline quickly approaching, even the experts feel as if a trade for AD is off the table and he won’t go to the LA Lakers this season.
