NBA Trade Rumors: LA Lakers, Boston Celtics Seriously Interested In Pelicans' Anthony Davis?

Rumors and questions have surrounded New Orleans Pelicans' big man Anthony Davis in recent days. Many have wondered if he will demand a trade or if he will sign a supermax extension with the Pelicans on July 1.

According to a report last week from ESPN's Zach Lowe, Davis has remained mum about his intentions to potentially join LeBron James with the Los Angeles Lakers or any other team. The Lakers have been considered a top candidate to land Davis because he and James share the same agent, Rich Paul.

Lowe also noted that the Boston Celtics remain interested in Davis and could offer the Pelicans the best package. The Celtics are one of the few teams that can put together a multiplayer deal and still have quality talent around Davis.

"Boston has been hawking Anthony Davis for years," NBA insider Adrian Wojnarowski said in an ESPN video with Lowe.

"They always hoped that it would be, whether it’s the end of this season or the beginning of next before the trade deadline, that they would gather up all those assets, all those picks [Celtics general manager] Danny Ainge has, [all the] young players, and they’d be the team to be able to get Anthony Davis.

"But now you have L.A. and if they get shut out in free agency, they’re going to have to take all their young players to try to use them to get Anthony Davis."

If the Pelicans were to trade Davis, they presumably would prefer to move him to the Eastern Conference.

But it may not make sense for the Pelicans to move Davis, no matter what they get in return. As Eric Pincus of Bleacher Report notes, Davis' contract includes a 15 percent trade bonus, which means the Pelicans would be responsible to pay an addition $4.1 million to Davis if he's dealt in July.

"There's no way they're paying that trade kicker," a Western Conference executive reportedly told Pincus. "None."

Pincus also reported that team executives believe Davis will end up in either Boston or L.A. before the 2019-20 season.

Despite the trade talk, the 25-year-old has publicly stated that he cares about winning with the Pelicans.

Working against the Pelicans is their lack of success since Davis joined the club in 2012. The Pelicans have reached the playoffs just twice and have won only one series.

New Orleans currently has the second-worst record in the Western Conference at 16-21.

The Lakers and Celtics are both considered attractive options for potential free agents or players seeking a trade. Both teams have plenty of trade bait to offer teams and both are expected to go deep into the playoffs in 2019 and beyond.

Davis' status bears some similarities to future Hall-of-Fame big man Kevin Garnett's predicament more than a decade ago.

Garnett, who was languishing with the Minnesota Timberwolves, refused to demand a trade despite interest from the Lakers and Celtics. Garnett eventually was dealt to Boston in the summer of 2007 for six players and draft picks and would later win his only title in 2008.

Bobby Ilich contributed to this report