One month and three days of hell is over. Anthony Davis is no longer a Dallas Maverick.
The blockbuster trade was announced by Shams Charania, who reported that Davis will be traded to the Wizards for four players and five draft picks.
But how does this trade effect the Mavericks?
Well, let’s break it down.
Trade terms:
Mavericks receive: Khris Middleton, A.J. Johnson, Malaki Branham, Marvin Bagley III, 2026 OKC Thunder first round pick, 2030 top 20 protected Warriors first round pick, 3 second rounds picks
Wizards
receive: Anthony Davis, Jaden Hardy, Dante Exum, D’Angelo Russell
Many thought this wasn’t going to be possible after Davis sustained a hand injury on Jan. 8 against the Utah Jazz, but the Mavericks got a trade done.
On the surface the trade return seems underwhelming, as the picks the Mavericks are receiving very late first-round picks, but that wasn’t the reason they made this trade. The primary motivation for this trade is to clear the books for the future with Cooper Flagg at the franchise helm. The Mavericks will free up over $70 million dollars next year, with every player outside of A.J. Johnson being on an expiring contract.
The Mavericks are also trading two other bad contracts; those being both D’angelo Russell, and Jaden Hardy.
This added flexibility is huge for the Mavericks, both in the short and long term. In the short term, these moves will allow for the Mavericks to sign both Ryan Nembhard, and Moussa Cisse to standard NBA contracts this offseason (as it did not create open roster spots for them), while also creating a $20 million rade exception.
But the biggest advantage of the trade is the long-term flexibility it affords the Mavericks, as now the team has ample room under the salary cap and extra draft picks to build around Flagg. They also gained two more draft picks in a stacked 2026 draft class, giving them even more bites at the apple. It will also allow them to tailor the roster around Flagg. With three more players on expiring deals, the Mavericks can bring in 4-5 new players during the offseason. This should allow them to focus on bringing in shooting and playmaking to supplement Flagg and avoid repeating the mistakes of last offseason.
While this may not be the team’s final move, it certainly gives the Mavericks room to be more discerning with other trade possibilities, seeing as how they no longer need to worry about large looming cap ramifications heading into next season.
With Davis gone, the remnants of Nico Harrison’s vision are well and truly buried, and a new era can begin. While the focus is certainly on the objective changes this will bring to the team, it should also help speed up the healing process and allow Mavericks fans to fully focus on the team’s 19-year-old generational talent.
