All Anthony Davis wants to do is win. Can New Orleans give him that?
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PHOTO: Ned Dishman/Getty Images[/caption]
At last year's trade deadline, former Kentucky star DeMarcus Cousins was surprisingly traded to New Orleans, giving the Pelicans two of the most dominant big men in the NBA in Cousins and Anthony Davis. More importantly (for Kentucky fans, at least), it gave the Big Blue Nation a go-to team to cheer for in the NBA.
At the time, many NBA fans and media personalities felt the Pelicans were destined for greatness, and that they were just one piece away from being a true contender in the West.
For the remainder of the season, however, losses continued to pile up, and they missed the playoffs for the fifth time in the last six seasons.
In an interview with ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski, Davis said playing with Cousins was difficult and very confusing at the beginning.
"I really didn't know how to play alongside of him in the beginning," Davis said. "We were both demanding the ball on the block. There was a lot of confusion."
This offseason, the Pelicans re-signed guard Jrue Holiday to an expensive contract, and brought on former Wildcats Rajon Rondo and Darius Miller.
31 games into the year, New Orleans sits at 15-16 and they hold onto the eight seed in the Western Conference Finals. If they keep it up, or even move up to the seven seed, they will either take on the Houston Rockets or the Golden State Warriors, two teams with a legitimate shot at sweeping the Pelicans in the first round.
Davis said he thinks the team is moving in the right direction, but he needs to start seeing some wins pile up.
"I love it here. I love this team. I think we're moving in the right direction," Davis told Wojnarowski. "DeMarcus, Rondo, some other players that are helping us, but people get judged on winning. And I want to win."
Wojnarowski reported that several NBA teams are "obsessed" with trading for Davis, with the Boston Celtics being the main team of interest.
PHOTO: Ned Dishman/Getty Images[/caption]
At last year's trade deadline, former Kentucky star DeMarcus Cousins was surprisingly traded to New Orleans, giving the Pelicans two of the most dominant big men in the NBA in Cousins and Anthony Davis. More importantly (for Kentucky fans, at least), it gave the Big Blue Nation a go-to team to cheer for in the NBA.
At the time, many NBA fans and media personalities felt the Pelicans were destined for greatness, and that they were just one piece away from being a true contender in the West.
For the remainder of the season, however, losses continued to pile up, and they missed the playoffs for the fifth time in the last six seasons.
In an interview with ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski, Davis said playing with Cousins was difficult and very confusing at the beginning.
"I really didn't know how to play alongside of him in the beginning," Davis said. "We were both demanding the ball on the block. There was a lot of confusion."
This offseason, the Pelicans re-signed guard Jrue Holiday to an expensive contract, and brought on former Wildcats Rajon Rondo and Darius Miller.
31 games into the year, New Orleans sits at 15-16 and they hold onto the eight seed in the Western Conference Finals. If they keep it up, or even move up to the seven seed, they will either take on the Houston Rockets or the Golden State Warriors, two teams with a legitimate shot at sweeping the Pelicans in the first round.
Davis said he thinks the team is moving in the right direction, but he needs to start seeing some wins pile up.
"I love it here. I love this team. I think we're moving in the right direction," Davis told Wojnarowski. "DeMarcus, Rondo, some other players that are helping us, but people get judged on winning. And I want to win."
Wojnarowski reported that several NBA teams are "obsessed" with trading for Davis, with the Boston Celtics being the main team of interest.
Davis remains an obsession of several NBA teams full of the necessary trade assets to unfasten him from New Orleans, should the Pelicans ever consider a rebuild --- or should Davis ever request a trade. Boston has remained vigilant on the possibility of acquiring Davis, and Davis knows it. "He told me that [Boston] was calling, but nothing was going to happen," Davis said. "At the same time, though, you see how organizations treat players. Isaiah Thomas. DeMarcus [Cousins] told me that the [Kings] told him that he wasn't going to get traded, but they traded him. Isaiah took his team to the Eastern Conference finals, and they traded him. "It makes you wonder: Does this organization really have my back?Davis said he wants to stay in New Orleans, but winning is his No. 1 priority going forward. "It's not about the money. It's not about having fans. The most important thing to me: winning. That's what I want to do. And I want to do it here," he said. Cousins is set to become an unrestricted free agent this offseason, and rumors of teaming up with John Wall in Washington next year are heating up. The former Wildcat big man was asked about those rumors last night, where he said he wasn't thinking about that right now.
Almost immediately afterward, however, Cousins went into the Washington locker room to chat with his former Wildcat teammate. https://twitter.com/ChaseHughesNBCS/status/943316627407458304 https://twitter.com/BenStandig/status/943316583648235521 Very interesting... If things don't get fixed soon in New Orleans, both Cousins and Davis could find themselves headed elsewhere in the very near future.Boogie gets the playing-with-Wall question: "It's not on my mind at all." pic.twitter.com/Xl8cNxH8sF
– Ben Standig (@BenStandig) December 20, 2017
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