The Dallas Mavericks have officially moved on from Anthony Davis, sending the All-Star big man to the Washington Wizards before the NBA trade deadline.
Dallas traded Davis, along with Jaden Hardy, D'Angelo Russell and Dante Exum in exchange for Khris Middleton, AJ Johnson, Marvin Bagley III, two first-round picks and three second-round picks.
The Mavs also got Tyus Jones in the deal, as the Charlotte Hornets were involved and received Malaki Branham in return.
Davis was injured frequently during his time in Dallas, so it's not surprising why the team opted to part ways with him. In fact, prior to the trade, he last played for the Mavericks on Jan. 8 after suffering from ligament damage to his left hand. Overall, AD played in just 29 games with the Mavs, averaging 20.2 points, 10.8 rebounds and 1.8 blocks per game.
The trade is certainly a disappointing end to the whole saga, especially since Dallas acquired Davis from the Los Angeles Lakers last season in exchange for superstar guard Luka Doncic.
The hope was for Davis to become the anchor of a championship-caliber defense for the Mavs. Unfortunately, he was barely available to make significant strides with the team.
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Dirk Nowitzki's True Feelings on Anthony Davis Trade
Mavs legend Dirk Nowitzki couldn't help but be disappointed about the Davis trade, especially since he feels the 32-year-old big man worked well alongside Cooper Flagg.
However, he understands that the move is likely the Mavs pushing the reset button as they intend to build around Flagg.
Dallas dumped a lot of contracts in the deal, with Bobby Marks of ESPN noting that they only have $150 million in guaranteed money next season, well below the luxury tax (projected to be at $201.7 million) and the apron ($210.7 million to $223.7 million).
"To me, looking at this deal at first glance, there's not a lot that came back for picks or player-wise," Nowitzki said about the Davis trade during an NBA on Prime broadcast. "So this is all really about financial flexibility for the future. And you know, they got rid of some contracts that were not favorable for the franchise."
Nowitzki added, "So, I'm a little disappointed, obviously. I think when AD actually played with Cooper, they played off each other really, really well. I think that was a solid combo, but we'll never know. I think what this ultimately is now is build around Cooper. Go young. See what the next year brings, with what the draft brings this summer. So ultimately now they're all in on Cooper Flagg and his future, and that's what they're going to build around."
Flagg, the No. 1 overall pick of the 2025 NBA Draft, has been sensational in his first season with Dallas. He's averaging 20.3 points, 6.6 rebounds, 4.2 assists, 1.2 steals and 0.8 blocks per game, giving the Mavs faithful some hope for the future after the Doncic trade disaster.
That being said, Nowitzki certainly makes a great point about the Mavs' latest decision. Clearly, it was not about just dumping Davis, but also positioning themselves for the future with Flagg at the center.