Clippers tag Shai Gilgeous-Alexander as untouchable in trades, even for Anthony Davis

Even though the NBA season is not technically over, the off season rumor mill is running at full speed.

Where will Kawhi land? Will Durant leave Golden State? And perhaps the most interesting story for Kentucky fans is what team will win the Anthony Davis trade sweepstakes?

If Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is deemed by New Orleans to be required in the deal, you can bet that Davis will not be playing for the Clippers.

On the Sedano Show on ESPN Thursday, Bobby Marks said the word in the Clippers organization is that Gilgeous-Alexander will not be on the table for trade talks, even in a potential Anthony Davis deal.

In The Ringer’s ongoing NBA rumor post, Haley O’Shaughnessy talked about why the former Kentucky point guard may be untouchable.

Unlike their fellow Los Angeles franchise, the Clippers are not willing to part with all of their young players for Anthony Davis. On Thursday’s Sedano Show, ESPN’s Bobby Marks said that he heard the team will not put Shai Gilgeous-Alexander on the table in trade talks. That somewhat explains why the Clippers, who were on Davis’ original list of preferred destinations in February, haven’t been mentioned much since. Gilgeous-Alexander is coming off a solid rookie debut, in which he started 73 games and averaged 10.8 points, 2.8 rebounds, and 3.3 assists with an effective field goal percentage of .512. He has shown enough already to convince Clippers fans that there’s a bright future ahead. Still, making SGA untouchable almost certainly takes L.A. out of the race for Davis. They must feel awfully optimistic about another superstar coming in free agency.

It seems clear that Gilgeous-Alexander is the point guard of the future for the Los Angeles Clippers, but is he valuable enough to keep them from pursuing Anthony Davis during his prime? That certainly seems to be the case.