2019 NBA Trade Deadline: 15 players in need of a trade
4. Jrue Holiday
3. Anthony Davis
We can talk about tampering until we’re blue in the face, but the simple fact of the matter is this: Anthony Davis wants a trade from the New Orleans Pelicans first and foremost because they failed to put a winning team around him, not because of Rich Paul, Klutch Sports or LeBron James.
It sounds like Jrue Holiday won’t have much to look forward to once the Brow is gone, so even if the Pelicans want to stay relevant and keep their stellar two-way guard, they may not have a choice before long. It makes more sense to blow it all up, targeting young cornerstones and future draft picks for a long-term rebuild.
NOLA has no defense, which is why this team stocked with Davis, Holiday, Julius Randle and Nikola Mirotic is somehow five games under .500 and five games out of a playoff spot. Despite having an MVP-caliber player year after year, the Pelicans have only won a single playoff series during AD’s tenure, and they’re likely to miss the postseason yet again. The mistakes have been wide-ranging, from Solomon Hill to shipping away first round picks for short-term stopgaps.
There hasn’t been a trade for a player of Davis’ caliber, in the middle of his prime, since Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. He turns 26 in March, and is finishing up his seventh year in the league, so the time to start contending is now. The offers will pour in, even if the Pelicans wait until the summer, when the Celtics can enter the bidding war and the 2019 NBA Draft order has been determined.
However, there are also reasons to move him now, especially given his injury history and how that could threaten a potential return if he gets banged up again. A deal for the Brow probably won’t happen before Feb. 7, let alone one for Holiday, but both Pelicans stars are in need of fresh starts in the wake of what’s about to happen.