A week before the February NBA trade deadline, Anthony Davis Sr. expressed strong opposition with the idea of letting his son, New Orleans Pelicans superstar Anthony Davis, play for the Boston Celtics. In an interview with ESPN , Davis Sr. said that he doesn’t like how the Celtics treated their superstars, specifically Isaiah Thomas, who ended up being traded after showing his dedication and loyalty to the franchise.
In a recent Q&A with Alex Wong of Yahoo Sports , NBA legend Kevin Garnett, who played for six seasons and won an NBA championship title in Boston, shared his reaction to Anthony Davis’ father’s comments about the Celtics. Garnett said that he understands how Davis Sr. feels, but he advised him to talk with Celtics President of Basketball Operations and General Manager Danny Ainge to know what kind of person he really is.
“He had his opinion and he voiced it. However they do it in Anthony Davis’s camp, as far as picking a landing spot, family is always going to be passionate. That’s his father and he wants his son to be in the best situation that he can be professionally and he wants his son to win. He wants him to be in an environment where it feels like his son is being supported. Anybody who is a parent would understand him standing up for his son and wanting him to be in a better situation.”
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No one can blame people from criticizing the Celtics for what they did to Isaiah Thomas, but Kevin Garnett wants everyone to understand that the NBA is a business. Danny Ainge may have repaid Thomas’ contribution to the Celtics in a wrong way, but he’s only doing what he thinks is best for the organization. Garnett has been in a similar situation with Thomas when the Celtics traded him to the Brooklyn Nets during the 2013 NBA offseason. However, Garnett remained professional and didn’t hold any grudge against the Celtics.
When he made his controversial statements against the Celtics, Anthony Davis Sr. clarified that it’s just his opinion and that he doesn’t speak for his son. During the 2019 NBA All-Star Weekend, Davis revealed that the Celtics are actually on his list of preferred destination, heating up the speculations that he will be heading to Boston in the 2019 NBA offseason. Of all the NBA teams interested in acquiring Davis, the Celtics are believed to be the team that can offer the best trade package to the Pelicans next summer.