Pelicans, Pistons & Kings Looking To Beef Up Rosters Via Trade To Accommodate Anthony Davis [Rumor]

TheSportster

By Lou Flavius

Published Dec 13, 2018

The Pelicans, Pistons, and Kings are all looking to improve the rosters in an attempt to keep and acquire Anthony Davis in free agency.

May 4, 2018; New Orleans, LA, USA; New Orleans Pelicans forward Anthony Davis (23) celebrates with guard Ian Clark (2) after scoring during the third quarter in game three of the second round of the 2018 NBA Playoffs at Smoothie King Center. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports

The New Orleans Pelicans, Detroit Pistons and Sacramento Kings are the most aggressive teams in the trade market at the moment.

Per ESPN's Brian Windhorst, the Pelicans are desperate to upgrade their roster in an attempt to keep All-Star center Anthony Davis, while the Pistons and Kings are looking to lure him by setting up impressive squads of their own.

Davis will become an unrestricted free agent at the end of next season and the Pelicans are hoping to be in a position where they could convince him that New Orleans is where he needs to be.

The Pelicans aren't all that great this season and are currently right on the .500 mark with a 15-15 record. They're also 10th in the Western Conference standings but are still very much in the playoff race.

Windhorst reports that NBA executives have made claims of the three aforementioned teams being the most active in terms of looking for trades and making calls.

"League executives report the New Orleans Pelicans, Detroit Pistons and Sacramento Kings lead the list of teams calling around looking for ways to upgrade their rosters in recent weeks," he writes.

"The Pelicans, who put in an offer for Jimmy Butler, are feeling the pressure to convince Anthony Davis to sign an extension next summer.

"They own their first-round pick, and general manager Dell Demps has routinely been willing to trade firsts for instant help in the past. That alone gives them a good chance to get an impact player for the second half if they're so inclined."

What This Means

Davis will have a host of options when he becomes a free agent in 2020 and the NBA landscape could be very different by then.

The Pelicans seem to be holding the advantage for now. However, they can expect major competition from a bevy of teams. It's also possible that teams offer trade packages to get the player before he becomes a free agent but that would obviously be quite risky.

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