Warriors eye Mavs' big man to bolster their frontcourt, potentially trading star talent while Dallas works to help Cooper Flagg's future.
DALLAS - The Golden State Warriors and the Dallas Mavericks are in similar situations, with both teams needing to settle their own in-house debates about how to balance the present with the future...
And how all of that might involve Anthony Davis.
Golden State owns a .500 record ... and has reason to believe it can contend should it secure more help around Stephen Curry.
Dallas has meanwhile dropped four of its last five and entered Monday’s matchup at Portland at 12-21. ... good for just 12th place in the West.
And a central question in Big D is whether rookie Cooper Flagg and the franchise would be better-served by hanging onto Davis (and waiting on the rehabbing Kyrie Irving) to discover if this roster can make a run ...
Or by trading A.D. and salvaging something for him as the franchise puts behind it the year-ago deal that brought him here from the Lakers while Luka Doncic moved to L.A.
Finances are a factor here if Davis, who, according to NBA insider Marc Stein, is on the Warriors' radar, is to be moved to Golden State.
From Stein: "The Warriors have held a longstanding fondness for Davis and I'm told that they have indeed had some internal discussions about pursuing him, but they do not appear to be actively doing so six-ish weeks out from the deadline.''
And why not?
"Golden State, for starters, has no realistic pathway to acquire Davis unless it is also willing to part with Jimmy Butler or franchise fixture Draymond Green,'' Stein reports. "I'm likewise told that Davis' contract — with potentially two years still left on it if the 32-year-old exercises his $62.7 million player option in 2027-28 — and the injury woes he has endured since becoming a Maverick have thrust a measure of pause into Golden State's deliberations."
Wanting Davis while losing Butler or Green (via what we assume would have to be a three-way deal)? We're not sure that tracks.
How about another idea, suggested by Fan Recap, that seems much simpler?
Golden State Receives:
- Daniel Gafford
- Jaden Hardy
Dallas Receives:
- Moses Moody
- Buddy Hield
- 2026 first-round pick swap
- 2028 first-round pick (top-4 protected; becomes unprotected in 2029)
The Warriors don't get Davis ... but they don't lose Butler and Green. Gafford fortifies them at center as long as he can stay healthy.
The Warriors keep Davis ... Moody is just 23 and can be a two-way helper. Hield can work as a shooter. And the two picks represent long-term thinking as Dallas uses just a bit of patience to build around Flagg.
Of course, a Davis deal (to Atlanta?) can also be done. But in this case, the Warriors and Mavericks move from A.D. talk to what seems like a very doable deal.