Anthony Davis spoke to the press for the first time since news of his trade request got out. The New Orleans Pelicans star said that he "never wanted it go public" but was unapologetic about his desire to leave the team.
Davis said that he's looking to leave New Orleans in search of a championship, noting that there's a time limit on NBA careers and he doesn't want to go down as a star who played for consistently out-of-the-hunt teams. "It’s my time. I feel like I gave this city, the organization, fans everything I felt like I could," he said. "Don't know how long I'm gonna play this game. People's careers are short. I feel like it's my time to move on."
Davis added that he's not going to clock out on the Pelicans. He said that he will play for New Orleans as long as he's under contract with the team.
"I'm going to remain professional," Davis told reporters. "I'm under contract, until my time ends here, that's what I'll do."
Davis has his sights set on Los Angeles, even if the Pelicans have intentionally ignored calls from the Lakers. Reports have surfaced claiming the Knicks were interested before they traded Porzingis to Dallas.
For all the players looking to join LeBron James in Los Angeles, James isn't paying too much attention to the rumors. He said that all the trade talk is just "fantasy basketball" until actual trades are made.
"There ain’t nothing to talk about,” James said in an interview with ESPN. “That ain’t nothing but fantasy basketball until something happens. We’ll see what happens.”
