Davis in limbo as the trading begins
Clippers send Harris to 76ers in first of several notable deals as NBA deadline nears
MIAMI — Anthony Davis is still a member of the New Orleans Pelicans. By noon Thursday, that may change.
Davis remained in place Wednesday, though the run-up to the NBA’s annual trade deadline picked up steam in plenty of other locales around the league. The first notable deal got done early Wednesday afternoon when the Los Angeles Clippers moved Tobias Harris to the Philadelphia 76ers as the centrepiece of a six-person, four-draft pick swap. Another big move was struck later when Chicago landed Otto Porter Jr. from Washington for Jabari Parker and Bobby Portis.
Harris, Boban Marjanovic and Mike Scott went to the 76ers, while Wilson Chandler, Mike Muscala and Landry Shamet went to the Clippers. Philadelphia — with an eye on moving way up from the No. 5 spot in the Eastern Conference — also gave up a protected 2020 first-round pick, a 2021 first-rounder that was once owned by Miami, and second-rounders in 2021 and 2023 through Detroit.
Another deal with tax ramifications was worked out between Miami and Phoenix. The Heat sent Tyler Johnson and Wayne Ellington to the Suns for Ryan Anderson, helping alleviate the logjam of guards that Miami coach Erik Spoelstra has been dealing with all season — plus considerably lowering the Heat’s expected luxury tax bill. It’s likely that Ellington will be a buyout candidate, and therefore would be able to pick his own spot to finish the season.
Meanwhile, Davis remained in place and out of uniform. If the Pelicans don’t trade Davis by Thursday, they’ll almost certainly be back in the depths of trade talks in June and July — draft time and free agency.
In other trades Wednesday:
■ A person familiar with the terms said NBA-leading Milwaukee was sending centre Thon Maker to the Detroit Pistons for forward Stanley Johnson.
■ The Los Angeles Lakers will be getting Reggie Bullock from the Detroit Pistons for rookie guard Svi Mykhailiuk. Bullock is a shooter, and Lakers star LeBron James loves surrounding himself with those.
■ Philadelphia swung a deal with Toronto, getting Malachi Richardson and draft considerations for cash.
■ Two people with knowledge of the deal say Houston, Sacramento and Cleveland are finishing a trade that will most notably send Iman Shumpert from the Kings to the Rockets. Houston is sending Brandon Knight and Marquese Chriss to the Cavaliers. Alec Burks will go from the Cavs to the Kings.