Could Anthony Davis be on the move this winter?
The Chicago Bulls enter today with a 3-4 record, coming off a tough loss at home last night to the Philadelphia 76ers. Joel Embiid took over late, and even took a jab at the city of Chicago in an Instagram post later that evening. It was a rough night for the Bulls as they dropped their second game in a row. It’s been an up and down start, leaving fans to wonder how high the ceiling really is for this injury-riddled Bulls squad. It’ll be tough to judge until the team is fully healthy.
That being said, an intriguing development to follow is the struggling Los Angeles Lakers who are off to a brutal 0-5 start. If this skid continues, Los Angeles Lakers GM Rob Pelinka could look to go into a full rebuild. I’m not sure that means trading Anthony Davis or LeBron James, but if one gets moved, the other will most likely follow. They also have no first round pick in this upcoming draft, so a tank is entirely out of the question. If the losses continue to pile up, the more likely this seems to be a possibility.
If this does become a reality, the Chicago Bulls should at least call the Lakers to inquire about Anthony Davis.
Trade LeBron James & Anthony Davis.
For their sake. And everyone’s sake.
So we can all quit this silly charade.
— Lakers Legacy (@LakersLegacyPod) October 27, 2022
Bringing the Chicago native Davis to the Bulls would electrify the fanbase. The United Center would suddenly have that spark that it’s been lacking since Derrick Rose was running the show. It would be a matter of how much the Bulls would be willing to give up.
Due to the blockbuster trades they’ve made in the past few years, the Bulls are a bit handcuffed on draft capital. However, they do have some solid talent such as Nikola Vucevic, Pat Williams, and Ayo Dosunmu that could be potential assets in another big trade. I think they would need help from a third or maybe fourth team to get something done, but it’s fun to hypothesize.
With the health problems the Chicago Bulls currently have, it might be hard to justify trading for another injury prone player like Anthony Davis. However, he’s not just some role player. Davis is an elite defender, maybe the best in the league, and would be an instant impact addition. Any defense would absolutely love to add a player like Anthony Davis and that’s obvious. Especially this Chicago Bulls defense that has had its share of struggles to begin the season.
Pretty brutal first quarter defense. 76ers are picking the Bulls rotations apart. "Only" 5/9 on threes but the quality of looks they're getting all over the court are just too easy.
Check out this cool hammer screen action they used to get Maxey a corner 3 pic.twitter.com/tqJWlSkoen
— Will Gottlieb (@Will_Gottlieb) October 30, 2022
Anthony Davis would demand a huge return…right?
I don’t personally think the package for Anthony Davis would be as demanding as some may think. We’re talking about a guy who missed a lot of time. In the 2021-22 season, he played in only 40 games. The year before that, he appeared in just 36 games. He’s already dealing with difficulty staying on the court to begin this year, as he aggravated his back a few days ago. While his value is still presumably high compared to most NBA players, it may be taking a decline as of late.
If the Lakers continue this downward spiral, they might think about moving him before his value takes a real tumble. He’s currently on a massive contract that was signed after his contributions to the 2020 NBA Finals, so the financial aspect of it is another factor to consider. The Bulls already have some pretty big contracts on the roster, so one member of the “core” would probably have to go.
At the very least, the phone call should be made by Bulls general manager Marc Eversley if he is indeed placed on the trade block.
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