Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum is perhaps the single most desired asset in a potential trade for Anthony Davis, one that can fit the “young player with All-Star potential” portion of the three-pronged request president of basketball operations David Griffin gave Monday to teams that inquired about the framework.
It was Tatum who reportedly made the Pelicans think twice about dealing Davis at the trade deadline, knowing a more succulent package could await them at the summer. Yet, the 21-year-old star on the rise, now heading into his third year in the league, is not concerned about any potential trades.
“The NBA is a business, and people have to make business decisions, and it is totally out of my control,” Jayson Tatum told Jeff Goodman in the Good N' Plenty podcast. “I’ve just got to control myself and what I do and working out and playing the game I love. And I tell people all the time that if I get traded, there’s nothing I can do. I’m not going to be upset or mad (at) who I play for. I just love to play basketball.”
That's a pro way to look at this potential deal, but as it sits, the Celtics will need to first figure out what to make of the Kyrie Irving impending free agency before they can make a move for Davis altogether — given that the two are under the same contract for 30% of the team's cap, which would not be allowed by the team.
If the Celtics take too long to figure out where Irving's heart is at, that could push them out of trade negotiations with the Pelicans, with others like the L.A. Clippers, Los Angeles Lakers, New York Knicks and the Brooklyn Nets as the major inquiring parties for Anthony Davis.
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