NBA trade news: Anthony Davis to Celtics stunning claim because of Kyrie Irving
ANTHONY DAVIS is seen as the main trade target for the Boston Celtics this summer, but they should regret not moving Kyrie Irving for the New Orleans Pelicans star during the season.
Anthony Davis opens up about fan reaction after trade demand
That’s according to NBA icon Chauncey Billups, who believes the Celtics would still be in the playoffs if they had traded Irving for Davis.
Boston are known long-term admirers of Davis and have been waiting for the perfect moment to trade for him.
The 26-year-old indicated weeks before the trade deadline in February that he wasn’t going to sign an extension with the Pelicans, leading to several teams searching trade scenarios.
The Los Angeles Lakers made the biggest push to strike a deal with New Orleans for Davis, but were ultimately rejected.
Boston could have traded for Davis, but it would have meant including Irving in a deal and it seemed as though they were reluctant to do so.
Both Irving and Davis signed their contract extensions under the "Rose Rule”, which means teams can’t trade for more than one player under that rule.
However, with the Celtics’ season now over after a disappointing conference semifinals defeat to the Milwaukee Bucks, attention now turns to Irving’s future with the franchise.
His numbers during the Bucks series were one of the worst postseason stats of his career, with many former players suggesting he will opt to leave for nothing in the summer.
And Billups believes Boston’s front office will now be regretting the decision not to try and trade Irving for Davis back in February.
“As we got to the deadline this year I said that the Boston Celtics should try to trade Kyrie Irving for Anthony Davis,” he said on ESPN.
“I got a feeling that if they had Anthony Davis and not Kyrie Irving that they’d still be playing.
“First of all they wouldn’t have been playing them.”
Celtics legend Paul Pierce was equally disappointed in Irving’s performance, but believes placing all the blame on him is unfair.
“I think a lot of things went wrong, not all of it has to be put on Kyrie’s shoulder,” he said.
“You have to put some accountability on coaching staff as well.
“It’s their job to put them in positions to make the chemistry on the court work, as many people as you can.
“And it just seemed like too many times there were inconsistencies in roles.”