Boston Celtics: All-time starting lineup of almost acquired stars

Center — Anthony Davis

A massive amount of buzz last offseason pertained to whether or not the Boston Celtics would strongly pursue All-Star big man Anthony Davis. And boy was it a ride!

Growing tired of the little successes achieved with the New Orleans Pelicans, in the middle portion of the 2018-19 season reports surface that Davis had requested a trade.

"“Anthony wants to be traded to a team that allows him the chance to win consistently and compete for a championship,” agent Rich Paul told Adrian Wojnarowski"

While there were a plethora of franchises vying for the MVP and Defensive Player of the Year candidate from 2018, many believed the Boston Celtics could offer the Pelicans the best return package for the big.

"The Boston Celtics have also been rumored off and on for years as a potential landing spot for Davis. The Celtics have a treasure trove of assets — young players, future Draft picks and veterans on favorable deals — that could make such a super-trade possible."

By June, both franchises were reportedly engaged in serious trade talks with the idea of the C’s forming a talented dynamic-duo of Kyrie Irving and Davis. Understandably, however, acquiring the star wouldn’t come easy for Beantown, as they were to likely have to give up one of, if not both of their young promising stars in Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown as well as shooting over copious amounts of draft capital — which they had at the ready but, still, it’s a king’s ransom for sure.

Fortunately, or unfortunately, depending on how you want to look at it — believe us, it’s fortunately — Danny Ainge believed NOLA’s asking price for Davis was too high and, in turn, never wound up making a deal.

Davis went on to be traded to the Los Angeles Lakers to team up with LeBron James and form their own dynamic-duo and was named to his seventh straight All-Star game. He’s boasting averages of 26.7 points, 9.4 rebounds and 2.4 blocks per game on 51 percent shooting from the floor, 34 percent shooting from deep and, alongside James, has guided the Lakers to the best record out in the West and their first playoff berth since 2013.

It appears that, in the end, both parties got what they wanted. For the Boston Celtics, it was a second star to pair with their star point guard, only instead of Irving and Anthony Davis it turned into Kemba Walker and Tatum. And, for Davis, he landed on a franchise that allows him to win and legitimately compete for championships.

While it would have been fun to see AD don the green and white of Boston Celtics threads, it appears this lack of a trade was a win/win situation for everyone involved… at least, at the moment.