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The New Orleans Pelicans have been firm in their desire to keep star forward Anthony Davis in-house, recently voiced by head coach Alvin Gentry in light of the slew of rumors surrounding his talisman big man. Yet the only way the team would consider a trade is if the All-Star turns down the supermax extension that is likely to come his way.
According to Scott Kushner of The New Orleans Advocate, the Pelicans have no intention of trading Davis this season, unless he turns down a five-year, $239 million offer that would make him the richest player in NBA history.
Davis has rapidly climbed into the debate of the best five players in the NBA and is now being treated as such after putting his name among the candidates for the Most Valuable Player award.
The two most storied teams in league history are making their race for his services very well known to the rest of the NBA, as the Boston Celtics have been panning for him for the last year, and the Los Angeles Lakers have shown a clear incline of hoping to pair him with LeBron James to make the most of the latter's prime.
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The Pelicans, however, can offer nearly $35 million more than he can get anywhere else — an amount beefy enough to make him consider staying (which was the entire purpose of this re-arranged CBA), yet recent history suggests that money won't be enough to sway his mind.
New Orleans will need to prove that the Pelicans are a team capable of competing in this ruthless Western Conference and that they can provide a home for his championship aspirations.
The Celtics host a treasure-chest-worth of draft picks but are unable to trade for Davis right away (unless doing so in exchange of Kyrie Irving, which defeats the point), given they recently traded for a designated player in Irving. That is the Lakers' greatest advantage heading into the trade deadline, as they do have the possibility to make this swap, but likely not before Davis has declined a supermax offer.
