While the Los Angeles Lakers are said to be the team Anthony Davis is hoping to end up with if and when the New Orleans Pelicans trade him, they are not the only franchise the star big man is open to playing for.
Shams Charania of The Athletic reported on Friday that Davis is focused on the Lakers as his top destination, but he is also open to playing for the New York Knicks, who made an effort to acquire him before they traded Kristaps Porzingis to the Dallas Mavericks.
Anthony Davis is focused on the Lakers as his top preferred destination, sources tell @TheAthleticNBA @WatchStadium. The Knicks are also as a preferred landing spot, and made push to New Orleans with offer around Kristaps Porzingis before the Dallas deal.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) February 1, 2019
Acquiring Davis would probably be a lot more difficult for the Knicks now that they no longer have Porzingis, but they are one of the worst teams in the NBA and will have a great chance at earning the No. 1 pick in the draft next year. That is something that will likely appeal to the Pelicans.
Davis’ agent said earlier in the week that the five-time All-Star wants to play for a championship contender, and the Knicks are not that at the moment. However, the Porzingis trade allowed them to clear the salary cap space necessary to sign two top free agents this offseason in a class that includes Kyrie Irving, Kevin Durant, Klay Thompson and other star players, so trading for Davis would only be the start.
While the Boston Celtics appear to have the best assets to offer New Orleans, Davis reportedly would not want to sign a long-term extension with them. GM Danny Ainge hinted this week that he would not need a long-term commitment from Davis to pull the trigger on a trade, so that may not matter.
