Tensions are rising as the NBA trade deadline on Feb. 5 at 3 p.m. CST nears. Amid the build-up in anticipation, the Dallas Mavericks still-injured star Anthony Davis cannot avoid speculation and rumors.
When Anthony Davis was ruled out for at least six weeks with ligament damage in his left hand, he took to social media to strike down "lies" about whether or not he needed surgery and how long he might potentially be sidelined.
Ultimately, a procedure was deemed unnecessary, but the extended time off - paired with Davis' alarming injury history - is still substantial. It's possible that he might not play again this season.
His future with the Dallas Mavericks, as a result, is also in question with the Feb. 5 NBA trade deadline now less than two weeks away.
With this in mind, many Mavs fans believe a trade of Davis is the best path for the future of the franchise. The team would clean its future cap sheet by avoiding a massive contract extension, would inherit draft capital to refill an empty chest of picks after this coming offseason, and finally would rid itself of the manner in which Davis was brought to Dallas in the first place.
Speaking of that, the Mavericks will be met with another brutal reminder of former general manager Nico Harrison's damning decision when Luka Doncic makes his second return to American Airlines Center as a Los Angeles Laker since his and Davis' swap last February. Dallas hosts Los Angeles at 7:30 p.m. on ABC, as scheduled, despite a potentially dangerous winter storm expecting to hit the city earlier in the day.
Davis has been quiet since calling out these lies online, but that doesn't mean the speculation has stopped.
Reports surfaced this week that Davis' agent, the renowned negotiator Rich Paul of Klutch Sports, said he urgently wants his client traded by next week.
The "report" by Yahoo! Sports was promptly deleted moments later.
It appears that Davis' camp will look to be as compliant as possible, though the belief remains that a trade benefits both parties more than any alternative. For AD, a fresh start allows him to potentially join a contender and return from injury in time for a playoff push.
He'd also be on a team that is more likely to sign him to a long-term contract extension, which Dallas likely will not consider since they will need to think about building a team around Flagg instead of unloading over $50 million to an aging and oft-injured player that is not a cornerstone of the future.
However, the Mavs' offseason plans are still foggier than they are clear. The team has not found a GM replacement for Harrison, and they likely won't until at least the spring. That patience puts them in position to pursue someone who may be currently running a team and has experience in the position, but is unhirable in the middle of the season right now.
This lack of leadership pits team governor Patrick Dumont as the final decision maker next to co-general managers in interim Matt Riccardi and Michael Finley. Dumont has mentioned that he would consider keeping Davis in an all-in, win-now gamble for next season with a healthy Irving, Dereck Lively II and Flagg starting next season.
Davis might be interested in this, as well, but it's a much riskier bet than starting fresh somewhere else.
“I don't get the sense that AD is pounding on the door of the front office and saying, 'Get me out of here,'" says ESPN reporter Tim MacMahon. "The Mavericks are exploring the market. They're being aggressive. They're having those conversations but they're not acting with a sense of urgency.
"They don't feel like they have to trade AD by the deadline. They don't feel like they have to trade him this summer. If Anthony Davis is on the Mavericks' roster to open camp next season, I don't think anybody in Dallas sees that as a major problem.”
And this season, Davis hasn't been much of a problem when he's been on the court ... but therein lies the problem itself. AD has played just 20 games this season due to multiple injuries, and since that fateful trade in February, he will have played less than 20 percent of the games the Mavericks have played once he eventually returns from injury.
Throughout this entire saga, that's the one thing that isn't a "lie".
