NBA Rumors: Anthony Davis, Kyrie Irving Celtics Union Possible, Lakers 'Saving Face'

Anthony Davis requested a trade from the New Orleans Pelicans, but it remains to be seen if they will allow him to leave before Thursday's trade deadline, with the Los Angeles Lakers desperate to sign him this month.

The Pelicans have made it clear the trade would happen according to their timeline and that they were not ready to rush it until they received an offer too good to turn down. The Lakers seemed to have made the best offer they could, which included five players and a first round draft pick, but the New Orleans franchise were yet to respond.

Davis was said to be keen to join the Lakers, but the Pelicans were aware they could get a better offer if they waited until the summer, with the Boston Celtics considered to be one of the main contenders as they have been long-time admirers of the power forward.

They cannot deal for Davis now as they already have Kyrie Irving on a designated contract and each team is allowed only one. The Celtics’ interest in the forward has dragged Irving into the trade talks, with many speculating he would leave his current employers when he enters free agency in the summer.

Moreover, with New York Knicks trading Kristaps Porzingis and opening up cap space for two big free agents, he has been linked with a move to Madison Square Garden. He refused to comment on his future when probed recently, but seemed to back-track on his verbal summer commitment to the Celtics about re-signing with them.

The Celtics are also desperate to get Davis and have stockpiled assets with only one mission in mind – that is to get Davis if he ever became available on a trade. According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, they have implored the Pelicans hierarchy to wait until the summer before making a decision.

And the Athletic’s Sam Amick reported Davis and Irving’s future were entwined, and they could either make or break Celtics’ dream of being immediate title contenders. He believes the former’s arrival would convince Irving to re-sign with the team, while the NBA insider also suggested the Celtics point guard re-signing could see Davis being inclined to join the Celtics and commit his long-term future.

Davis will become a free agent in 2020 and according to multiple reports, the Celtics were not on the list of teams he was willing to commit his long-term future to, but Irving’s commitment could change the forward’s mind.

Meanwhile, NBA insider Leigh Ellis claimed the Lakers were now trying to save face by backing away from the Davis trade. They were said to be taking a back seat and waiting for the Pelicans to respond.

Despite the trail going cold, the trade talks are expected to heat up when the deadline gets closer. But Ellis feels the Lakers would be disappointed as the Pelicans seem to be convinced that waiting until the summer was their best chance at getting the best possible deal.

“The Lakers are trying to save face here,” Ellis explained, as quoted by the Express. “When you make such a big offer and the other team doesn’t even acknowledge, you look desperate. I think the Lakers are saying ‘yeah, we want him, but we’re not going to make ourselves look foolish’.”

“They want to get Anthony Davis, they know he wants to go there, and they’ve basically offered all they can. So the ball is in their [Pelicans] court. If they don’t want to make this move, it’s the end of it.

“But we know with a couple of days before the trade deadline, it’s going to pick back up and the Lakers are going to go back into it to convince New Orleans to pull the trigger on this deal,” he explained. “New Orleans are probably thinking that it’s in their best interest to wait until July before moving Anthony.”