NBA Rumors: Latest Anthony Davis Buzz; DeMar DeRozan, Aaron Gordon Trade Talk
Things are working out pretty well for Anthony Davis and the Los Angeles Lakers so far.
The blockbuster offseason trade that sent him from the New Orleans Pelicans came with its fair share of risks—the possibility of not finding chemistry with LeBron James chief among them. At 10-2, however, most of them seem to be in the rearview.
As Davis sought to get out of New Orleans, however, Los Angeles wasn't the only option. The six-time All-Star also had interest in joining the New York Knicks. A deal would have landed the Knicks a new superstar in the wake of trading away Kristaps Porzingis.
According to ESPN's Brian Windhorst, New York wasn't sold on Davis being that superstar, however:
"Unlike other major stars recently, Davis had expressed interest in playing for the Knicks. But Mills and Perry told people they were turned off by the Pelicans' high asking price of multiple first-round picks plus multiple young players, even though the Knicks had that type of package thanks to their Porzingis trade. They said it would have undercut their long-range plan of building through the draft and developing picks into stars."
The 3-6 Knicks may regret their decision, but adding Davis would not have fit into the plan of drafting and developing players. L.A. surrendered three first-round draft picks along with Lonzo Ball, Brandon Ingram and Josh Hart to acquire Davis.
New York went on to take RJ Barrett with the third pick in the draft, and the Knicks will presumably build around him for the long term. The Lakers, meanwhile, hope that their bold move will translate into more immediate success.
Magic Have Interest in DeRozan, Drawing Interest in Gordon
The Orlando Magic could be interested in making a couple of significant deals of their own. According to Kevin O'Connor of The Ringer, Orlando has explored the possibility of acquiring guard DeMar DeRozan from the San Antonio Spurs.
"Multiple league sources say the Magic are scouring the trade market for scoring help and have already expressed interest in trading for DeRozan," O'Connor wrote.
Adding DeRozen would make sense, as the Magic went into the weekend averaging just 100.3 points per game, second-fewest in the NBA. DeRozan is averaging 20.2 points and 4.8 rebounds per game.
Per O'Connor, the Spurs could be open to letting DeRozen go: "It would surprise none of the front-office executives I've spoken with if the Spurs did move DeRozan."
The desire to add a player like DeRozan doesn't necessarily mean Orlando is looking to part with the talent it has—though teams have expressed interest in forward Aaron Gordon.
"Multiple teams are monitoring Magic forward Aaron Gordon with interest should an opportunity present itself, but the Magic have shown no interest in moving him, sources said," Shams Charania of The Athletic wrote.
For their part, hanging on to Gordon makes sense for the Magic. He's in the second year of a four-year, $80 million deal and is averaging 14 points and 8.3 rebounds per game. At just 24, Gordon can be a building block for the next several seasons.
