One week before the season's trade deadline, New Orleans Pelicans superstar Anthony Davis shocked the basketball world when he requested a trade via his agent, Rich Paul. Although it seemed out of nowhere, the speculations were his camp would want to team him up with LeBron James, who is currently playing for the Los Angeles Lakers.

Davis and James are both represented by Paul. The purple and gold were willing to gut their roster just to acquire AD from the Pels, but there were reports that Boston Celtics front office guru Danny Ainge called New Orleans management and told them to wait until this summer, as they will be willing to offer anyone on their roster as well.

Before that question is answered, let us first discuss an intriguing trade scenario that the Celtics and Pelicans could explore, as suggested by Ethan Krieger of PelicanDeFrief.com.

A three-team trade that also involves the Indiana Pacers.

So, who will get who?

Boston Celtics – Anthony Davis

New Orleans Pelicans – Jayson Tatum, Domantas Sabonis, draft picks, other assets.

Indiana Pacers – Jaylen Brown, Marcus Smart

Why it makes sense for Boston?

Their main goal is of course, to acquire AD, which they will, at least in this scenario. They would become the favorites to come out of the Eastern Conference this June. Davis, alongside Irving, will make Boston an inside-outside threat. Sure, they will give up three young assets, but they will get a generational talent in return.

Acquiring Davis could also convince Irving to stay in Boston, and the Celtics can just find replacements for Tatum, Brown, and Smart via free agency.

Why it makes sense for the Pelicans?

Losing a guy like Davis would surely hurt the franchise, but at least they got some young assets in return. Tatum could be their next franchise player, if he continues to develop. He's already shown that he can lead the team by helping the Celtics reach the Eastern Conference Finals. So he will most definitely have that opportunity in New Orleans.

Sabonis is one of the fastest rising bigs in the league at the moment. If the Pelicans can convince Julius Randle to stay, he and Sabonis would most certainly dominate the paint.

The Pacers will also be getting a lot of assets in this trade.

Why it makes sense for the Pelicans?

Indy is expected to have All-Star guard Victor Oladipo next season, but could lose several players due to free agency. Having Brown and Smart on board gives the Pacers an athletic trio of wing players, while they can just continue developing defensive stalwart Myles Turner.

Why didn't the Celtics push for this or any trade for AD during the deadline?

Time to address the elephant in the room.

As you all know, the Celtics weren't able to trade for AD because of a rule that the NBA has created back in 2011. It's called the ‘Rose Rule.' To further understand what it is, here's an excerpt from an article written by Charles Curtis for USAToday.com.

It was named after Rose because was NBA MVP in 2010-11, a rule that would reward players who exceeded their value while on their rookie deals.

Why is that a problem for a Davis and Celtics trade? Because NBA teams are only allowed to have one player who signed a “Rose Rule” extension and are still on that contract. (UPDATE: It’s been pointed out to me that a team actually can have two “Rose Rule” players, but only one can be acquired through a trade and the Celtics dealt for Irving in 2017). Both Kyrie Irving and Davis received Rose Rule extensions on their current contracts.

Now, since Irving was acquired by Boston via trade with the Cleveland Cavaliers last 2016, that means they can't get Davis via trade as well. Their options back in February were to trade Kyrie, which is something that they didn't want to do, or wait til free agency, which is why Ainge asked the Pels to wait.

The problem about the Celtics waiting this summer is the fact that Irving could leave them and join another team, as he's an unrestricted free agent. If that happens, Boston will more likely back out of any trade talks involving AD, as they cannot afford to lose both Irving and Tatum, even if that means they will get Davis in return.

Also, even if there was no ‘Rose Rule,' there's no guarantee that the Pacers would be involved in this trade. Yes, it does make sense for them, but they are also doing fine without making any moves. They are still the fourth team in the Eastern Conference, even though Oladipo hasn't played for more than two months now.

It will be pretty interesting to see how Ainge and the Celtics are going to solve this problem this July. One thing's for sure though, if they happen to acquire Davis, convince Irving to stay, and somehow find a way to keep Tatum, they will be one formidable team next season.