Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you probably know by now that NBA star Anthony Davis has requested a trade from the New Orleans Pelicans. Suffice to say, the past couple of weeks have been pretty rough for New Orleans sports fans.
Speculation is rampant on where he’ll land. We’re in an era where the players are tampering and openly recruiting each other to build super teams while NBA Commissioner Adam Silver is largely asleep at the wheel. While anything is possible, the two destinations getting the most attention are Los Angeles and Boston.
The Los Angeles Lakers seem like a natural fit. Davis signed with agent Rich Paul of Klutch Sports in September of last year. Paul is the founder of Klutch Sports and a close friend of Lakers star LeBron James.
In October of last year, Lakers President Magic Johnson promised to deliver another big superstar – yes, he actually said that about a month after it was announced that AD signed with LeBron’s friend at Klutch Sports. In December of last year, LeBron said that he’d like to play with AD. Maybe the Lakers aren’t the best fit as much as they were the carefully crafted plan all along.
The Boston Celtics are on the outside looking in. Davis may not be as natural of a fit on such a talented team who’s still trying to figure out how to consistently win with a healthy Kyrie Irving and a healthy Gordon Hayward.
Questions loom if Davis would even consider staying in Boston if they traded for him, but one thing isn’t in question – the Celtics can offer the Pelicans a better deal for Davis than the Lakers, as long as the Pelicans are willing to wait until July 1st, when the Rose Rule no longer applies.
Enter Anthony Davis’ dad, Anthony Davis Sr. Apparently dad Davis isn’t a big day one fan of the Celtics. He told ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne that he would never want his son to play with Boston after how they treated Isiah Thomas. The Celtics have no loyalty, he claimed.
Thomas, a beloved member of the roster, was dealt to the Cleveland Cavaliers in a trade where the Celtics acquired superstar Kyrie Irving. Ultimately, Celtics General Manager Danny Ainge made a difficult but good business decision for the franchise.
Gone are the days of the Larry Bird’s playing their entire careers in Boston. The NBA is a business and the modern NBA is the polar opposite of loyalty. Cleveland painted a mural of LeBron, and he still left his home turf…twice. Dad Davis’ own son has played his entire 6-year career with New Orleans and quietly began planning his exit out to play for a championship contender now. Where is his loyalty?
The last time I checked, at 25 years old Anthony Davis has already achieved grown ass man status. He’s more than capable of speaking for himself and making his own decisions. Sure, his dad will have personal opinions on his career, but why should we care? What his dad is doing is the sports equivalent of shaking his fist and yelling “Get off my lawn.”
Whether it’s Los Angeles, Boston or somewhere else, maybe he should be more focused on supporting whatever position his son will be placed in.
