Anthony Davis asked the New Orleans Pelicans for a trade earlier in the week, and one of the first teams lining up for his services are the Boston Celtics.
However, the Celtics cannot trade for Davis before the Feb. 7 deadline due to the “Rose rule” applying to Boston because Kyrie Irving is on the roster. As a result, Boston won't be able to deal with New Orleans until the summer, and the C's are telling the Pelicans to wait:
So the Celtics are willing to trade anyone but Kyrie Irving for Anthony Davis. Am I the only person that would love to see a Jayson Tatum led Pelicans squad? pic.twitter.com/FtzoHGwvFu
— Chris Montano (@gswchris) January 31, 2019
It makes plenty of sense for New Orleans to hold off and wait for Boston.
Article Continues BelowAfter all, Davis cannot opt out of his deal until next summer, so he is under the Pelicans' control through 2020. So, unless the Pels merely want to accommodate Davis' desire to get out of town, they are not likely to trade him within the next week.
As ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski points out, the Celtics have assets that teams like the Los Angeles Lakers just don't have. Not only does Boston have young and talented players such as Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, Marcus Smart and Robert Williams, but it also owns a plethora of draft picks it can use to sweeten the pot for the Pelicans.
No other team has that combination of pieces, so the Pels would certainly be smart to wait until July to finally move their prized big man, and it seems like that is what is probably going to happen.
Whether or not the Celtics end up getting Davis is anyone's guess, but what we do know is that the Pelicans probably won't be trading the 25-year-old before Feb. 7.