Anthony Davis finds himself in trade discussions once again as an NBA analyst felt the Los Angeles Lakers must either trade the center or compliment him with the right pieces.
The opinion comes after his scintillating 44-point display against the Milwaukee Bucks that saw the Lakers edge them out 133-129. The big man was instrumental once again as he contributed to a major chunk of the points and some impressive defensive displays while at it.
CBS’ Brad Botkin felt Davis was playing his best basketball and that applies massive pressure on the front office to make some major upgrades to their roster that immediately puts Los Angeles as one of the title contenders.
This is a team that has to act right now, one way or the other. Every week — even every day — the Lakers wait is a big risk considering Davis’ injury history.
Having said that, the chances of Rob Pelinka having the guts to trade Davis while he’s playing like this, to say nothing of the Klutch factor, feels pretty close to zero. So he has to go the other way, because the risk of wasting Davis’ trade value while it’s skyrocketing is only trumped by wasting what could be the last year of a championship-level LeBron.
He further added:
Earlier in the season, before Davis was playing like this? A trade probably wasn’t worth it. The Lakers weren’t going to compete for anything significant anyway. But with MVP-level Davis? It’s a whole different story. If the Lakers go get some real reinforcements and somehow cross their fingers hard enough for Davis and James to remain healthy for just six more months, this is a team that can do some real damage.
Botkin makes a valid point. Despite Russell Westbrook and Lonnie Walker IV’s timely contributions, it’s not enough if one of their major stars, James or Davis gets injured. Both have been dealing with foot and back issues respectively, but have been gutting through it.
Lakers Don’t Intend To Trade Anthony Davis
The start of the season that saw the Lakers go 0-5 gave rise to speculations that Anthony Davis would find himself on the trade block, but the Lakers’ front office quashed all rumors by saying they didn’t intend to do away with their superstar.
According to Chris Haynes of Bleacher Report, the Lakers have absolutely no plans of trading AD.
With Russell Westbrook thriving in his new role as a sixth man, the Lakers are now receiving calls about his availability, sources say, but talks are not at a serious stage.
And while it’s been a talking point on social media, the Lakers are not considering trading Davis, according to sources. For any dialogue of that nature to occur, Klutch Sports CEO Rich Paul would have received calls from interested teams inquiring if his client would agree to an extension if they traded for him. Those conversations have not taken place, sources say.
Davis, as Botkin points out has been in sizzling form. At the time of writing, he averages 27.2 points, 12.6 rebounds, and 2.7 assists.
Playing at the five has yielded favorable results for the Lakers, and with the December 15 trade date approaching, Pelinka will most certainly make a beeline to add more suitable talent to assist their star player.
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