NBA Rumors: Kyrie Irving Recruited Anthony Davis to Celtics Before 'Falling Out'

The Boston Celtics could look very different if Kyrie Irving got his wish while he was playing for the franchise.

Irving recruited Anthony Davis to the Celtics after telling season-ticket holders before the 2018-19 season that he planned to re-sign with Boston, according to Heavy.com's Steve Bulpett. Davis was playing for the New Orleans Pelicans and could have been acquired in an offseason trade.

However, a league executive told Bulpett that Davis and Irving had a "falling out":

"It was looking like Anthony Davis was going to go to Boston with Kyrie there for a stretch. That's what Kyrie wanted. Boston would have had to work it out with New Orleans, but once Anthony made his decision of where he wanted to go, the Pelicans wouldn't have had much choice."

"But that's the way it was going. I think people assumed at first that [Kevin] Durant would stay with Golden State, so Kyrie was courting AD to join him in Boston. It was looking good, but then Anthony and Kyrie had a little bit of a falling out for some reason. I think Kyrie fell more in love with Kevin Durant as opposed to Anthony Davis. Maybe he realized KD was possible."

Another source told Bulpett that Irving "had a good team in Boston, but he wanted to play with another superstar." The star point guard reportedly began the year recruiting for the Celtics, but when he realized the team wasn't going to acquire that caliber of player, his feelings changed.

A third source told Bulpett that Irving "fell out of love with Boston" for several reasons, including that some of the young players didn't respect him like he wanted. In addition, Irving felt like former head coach Brad Stevens didn't know how to coach a superstar, the source added.

It's unclear what caused the reported falling-out between Irving and Davis. However, Irving left the Celtics after the 2018-19 campaign and joined Kevin Durant with the Brooklyn Nets, while Davis was traded to the Los Angeles Lakers.

Irving is in his third season with the Nets, but he has played just 14 games this year. Irving, who isn't vaccinated against COVID-19, hasn't been able to play in home games because of New York City's vaccination mandate for indoor arenas.

The 29-year-old is averaging 24.1 points, 4.8 rebounds and 5.4 assists per game while shooting 45.2 percent from the floor and 36.8 percent from deep. Having him off the court for home games has hurt the Nets, who sit eighth in the Eastern Conference with a 31-29 record. 

As for Davis, he won an NBA title in his first season with the Lakers. However, injuries have limited the veteran to 37 games this season. Still, he is averaging 23.1 points, 9.7 rebounds, 2.9 assists and 2.3 blocks while shooting 53.7 percent.

The Lakers have struggled this season and are ninth in the Western Conference with a 27-31 record.

A tandem of Irving and Davis would have been fascinating in Boston. They'd likely be playing alongside Jayson Tatum, who is blossoming into one of the best young players in the NBA, and possibly Jaylen Brown.

However, Boston has been fine without either player. The team is playing strong defense and sits sixth in the East with a 35-26 record.