Lakers Rumors: Anthony Davis, Kyrie Irving Could Join LeBron James If All Breaks Right For L.A.

The Anthony Davis Sweepstakes have begun now that the NBA’s best big man has asked the New Orleans Pelicans for a trade. The Los Angeles Lakers are one of the top suitors for the 25-year-old, and there’s a scenario in which this leads to L.A. getting two star players to pair with LeBron James.

The Lakers and Boston Celtics are considered to be the frontrunners to acquire Davis. There’s also a chance that Kyrie Irving will decide to sign a contract with the team that has Davis on its roster for the 2019-2020 season.

Boston can conceivably offer New Orleans the best package in the summer, but having Irving on their roster precludes them from doing so this season. NBA teams are not allowed to have two players with the type of contract that both Irving and Davis possess. The Celtics can’t acquire Davis until the summer when Irving can become a free agent and sign a new deal.

Los Angeles has until the Feb. 7 trade deadline to acquire Davis and prevent Boston from becoming a bidder for the All-Star. The Pelicans would probably be best served by waiting until the summer to make a deal when they would likely get more offers, but it’s possible that they will accept the Lakers’ offer within the next 10 days.

L.A. can send New Orleans several promising young players in Lonzo Ball, Brandon Ingram and Kyle Kuzma, in addition to future draft picks.

If the Lakers trade a large portion of their roster for Davis, they will have plenty of cap space in the summer. Maybe they won’t be able to offer a free agent a full max contract, but they might be able to get pretty close. Los Angeles can also potentially sign a max free agent this summer and then trade for Davis once that deal is inked.

Would that entice Irving to leave Boston for Los Angeles?

A lot has changed since Irving declared in the preseason that he would re-sign with the Celtics in free agency. Boston has not played like the favorites in the Eastern Conference, and an early playoff exit is far from out of the question. The point guard has publicly expressed frustrations with his teammates, and he even reached out to LeBron James regarding those issues.

That now infamous phone call between the two former teammates seems to have buried the notion that Irving would be opposed to joining James in L.A. Several NBA insiders have raised the possibility of the star guard signing with the Lakers in the offseason.

Yahoo Sports’ Chris Haynes has reported that there’s a “growing belief of uncertainty” that Irving will stay with the Celtics after this season. ESPN’s Brian Windhorst suggested on multiple platforms Monday that Irving might choose to sign with the Lakers if they can come to an agreement with the Pelicans for Davis. Former Celtics’ player and NBC Sports Boston analyst Brian Scalabrine admitted on “The Crossover NBA Show with Chris Mannix” that he’s concerned Irving will bolt to Los Angeles if Davis is wearing the purple and gold.

“Him (Irving) and Anthony Davis are boys. I think they text like every day. I’d be really worried about that,” Scalabrine said Monday.

Davis can’t control where he’s traded. Players in recent years have tried and failed. Paul George and Kawhi Leonard both made it known that they wanted to be in Los Angeles, and both All-Stars were sent elsewhere.

There is speculation that Davis could indicate that he will only sign a contract extension with the Lakers. If that’s the case, any team that trades for Davis would risk losing him as a free agent in 2020. Doing so could force Davis’ suitors to lower their offer to New Orleans—Boston could take Jayson Tatum off the table—making Los Angeles’ trade package seem more desirable, even with the Celtics in the mix this summer.

Irving isn’t the only potential All-Star that could complete a Lakers’ “Big 3” that starts with James and Davis. Kawhi Leonard, Jimmy Butler and even Klay Thompson could be options for Los Angeles in free agency. Maybe Kemba Walker could fill that role of a star point guard if Irving stays in Boston.

But we’ve seen how successful James and Irving can be together, and adding Davis to the mix might make the Lakers the unquestioned NBA favorites going forward.