The latest on the Dallas Mavericks' interest in moving on from one era to the next.
Dallas Mavericks ownership moved on from part of the mess created by the Luka Doncic trade by firing the man responsible for the idea. Now, the team might still be left with the second half of the problem: the player Doncic was traded for.
Anthony Davis has had his moments of brilliance, but has offered the Mavericks much less in the form of consistency. His career has been plagued by injuries in the nine months since his arrival, sitting out more games than he's played and already seeing rookie Cooper Flagg take the reins as Dallas' go-to figure down the stretch of games.
Minority owner Mark Cuban has claimed that Dallas plans on keeping Davis, rather than trade him in the coming months, but ESPN insider Shams Charania's latest scoop continues contradicting that idea.
The Mavs do plan on building around the 18-year-old rising star Flagg, alongside veteran ball-handler Kyrie Irving upon his return from injury. Davis doesn't fit as seamlessly into that agenda. That's why Charania is reporting that the Mavs will survey the trade market for him as he's "expected to be a critical trade target of several teams, including many of the East's contenders."
The Detroit Pistons, Atlanta Hawks and Toronto Raptors are named as potential suitors for Davis as they try to build a competitive team in a seemingly wide-open Eastern Conference where many of the previous top teams are handicapped by long-term injuries. The crumbling relationship with the Milwaukee Bucks and superstar forward Giannis Atentokounmpo is also something to monitor.
The Mavs are 11th in the West at 9-16 (one spot out of the Play-In), meaning Davis might not be the only trade candidate once the rebuild around Flagg inevitably begins. Veteran shooter Klay Thompson, rotational big man Daniel Gafford and reserve point guard D'Angelo Russell are also reportedly on the market.
"Davis' agent, Klutch Sports CEO Rich Paul, has met with Mavericks interim co-general managers Michael Finley and Matt Riccardi, and requested clarity about whether the franchise wants to extend Davis in the offseason or trade him ahead of the deadline," Charania said. "Finley and Riccardi accepted the message and stated the franchise wants to keep its options open and view how the team plays for the next few weeks. They have not ruled out the possibility of an extension."
Davis averages a team-high 19.6 points and 10.2 rebounds per game when healthy, but has only played in 10 of Dallas' 25 games this year while dealing with a calf strain for much of the season.
The 10-time All-Star will turn 33 years old in March, and soon after will be eligible to sign a $275 million max extension, which would stretch until his age-37 campaign and pay him $76 million that season. If Dallas ever had doubts about signing the 25-year-old Doncic to that level of a mega extension, then there surely will be similar worries about doing so with Davis.
Thompson and Gafford's timelines are less controversial and more unfortunate given the fallout of this roster construction mess with Davis.
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The former "Splash Bro" Thompson signed to the Mavericks ahead of last season with the vision of joining the defending Western Conference-champion duo of Doncic and Irving, but now Dallas doesn't look like the contender Klay would want to compete with as he approaches the twilight of his storied career.
Gafford isn't expected to rise above Dereck Lively II in potential to be a starting center to build a future around, and despite restructuring his contract this offseason, Gafford's deal includes flexibility for the Mavs. Lively's frequent injury struggles make the case to keep Gafford for some type of interior presence if Davis is traded, or it at least requires that a starting-caliber post player is acquired in a transaction.
Charania adds: "Mavericks governor Patrick Dumont has taken a patient approach since firing general manager Nico Harrison on Nov. 11. Dumont has relied on Finley, Riccardi, coach Jason Kidd and minority owner Mark Cuban in his front office corps, and has given Finley and Riccardi the power to lead conversations on the franchise's future. A GM search is still expected in the offseason, and Finley and Riccardi are expected to be candidates, sources said."
The fact that Dallas' first-round pick in 2026 is the team's last premium NBA Draft positioning in a handful of years makes them likely to begin transitioning from Davis to Flagg as the centerpiece of the team soon, along with a top draft choice and resources inherited in a trade.
"Teams are already preparing for conversations with the Mavericks at the deadline," says Charania, "And those talks could create significant decisions league-wide."
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