After being told for weeks that the Boston Celtics were not on Anthony Davis’ list, we’re now being told AD would be cool with wearing Celtic green.
Many in the media were being told for weeks that Anthony Davis was not interested in being a Boston Celtic.
Now, on the eve of the All-Star Game, Davis is reportedly cool with wearing Celtic green.
ESPN’s Tim Bontemps tweeted out mid-Saturday morning that, when asked if the Celtics were not on Davis’ list of “preferred teams” that he would like to be traded to, he said the Celtics were indeed “on my list.”
That’s a complete 180-degree turnaround from what transpired before the trade deadline expired.
To refresh everyone’s memory, Davis told the New Orleans Pelicans management that he was done trying to make it work in the Big Easy, and was not going to sign a contract extension after his current deal expires in 2020. That put the Pelicans brass in a bind as they had every intention of trying to keep their franchise centerpiece in New Orleans for the foreseeable future.
The one team that pretty much everyone who covers the league had him as a lock to be traded to was the Los Angeles Lakers, as LeBron James and Magic Johnson had long sought to add the talented superstar to their roster.
However, Celtics GM Danny Ainge successfully persuaded then-Pelicans GM Dell Demps to hold off on the trade with the Lakers, as the Celtics had better draft picks and assets. The problem was that Davis originally had no intention of going to Boston, and made it clear, through his representatives, that anywhere he was traded to that wasn’t on his “preferred list” would essentially be a one-year rental for his services, including Boston.
Now, that may not be the case, and for the Celtics, it will provide them an extra incentive to try to keep Kyrie Irving in Boston for the long-term as well. The drama just gets more and more interesting.