The Washington Wizards hope to keep Anthony Davis as a successful long-term fixture, but there is still a strong chance they trade him this season. Davis will be a free agent at the end of the season and has discussed wanting to explore his options. The main problem is Davis wants to see if the Wizards can win to find relevancy in the NBA before extending a long-term contract to make Washington his home.
Blake Silverman listed the teams that will be most interested in Davis if the Wizards decide to move him for second guessing signing the extension:
“Potential suitors: Warriors, Rockets, Nets, Hornets
A trade partner would just need to be able to stomach the enormous amount left on his current contract. Davis has yet to make his Wizards debut after the Dallas Mavericks dealt him to Washington at last season’s deadline. That brings an assumption that Washington wanted to use Davis, but what if the franchise has a change of heart after the lottery luck which landed AJ Dybantsa?”
A trade partner would just need to be able to stomach the enormous amount left on his current contract. Davis has yet to make his Wizards debut after the Dallas Mavericks dealt him to Washington at last season’s deadline. That brings an assumption that Washington wanted to use Davis, but what if the franchise has a change of heart after the lottery luck which landed AJ Dybantsa?”
The Houston Rockets were listed right after the Golden State Warriors as the two teams most likely to make a big trade for Davis. Golden State has been linked to Davis since the end of the season, but Houston will likely need to struggle a bit before pulling the trigger on such a big move during the season.
Only two listed teams have anywhere near NBA Championship goals to acquire Davis. Golden State badly needs more talent to have any chance of playoff success with Stephen Curry and a hopefully returning Jimmy Butler.
Houston stands out as a more surprising team since they already have superstar Kevin Durant and All-Star center Alperen Sengun. The trade would likely come from the Rockets struggling and realizing the roster needs real change to win playoff series.
Durant could be traded for Davis to head to his hometown team if last season’s Twitter burner story remains an issue. Otherwise, a younger talent like Jabari Smith would have to be sacrificed to take the risk on an older injury prone big man. Davis does prefer to play power forward, so he would indeed welcome teaming with Sengun.
A scenario where Washington wants to move on from Davis would require other teams to also have situations forcing change. Sports Illustrated listed the Brooklyn Nets and Charlotte Hornets as two unlikely teams who could want him.
Both franchises are hoping to at least compete for a playoff spot and could make a trade for the big man. The Boston Celtics are another team that could make sense if they don’t like the results of Mitchell Robinson as their premiere center.
Davis is talented and respected enough to see any team needing a center or power forward to get involved. The 2020 NBA Championship for the Los Angeles Lakers proved that Davis could help a team win as a top player. Unfortunately, that has not been the case since then with only one strong season not fully impacted by injury or team failure.
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This article was originally published on HEAVY
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