Dallas Mavericks Predicted To Trade Anthony Davis

The Dallas Mavericks have been predicted to trade Anthony Davis before the 2026 NBA trade deadline.

NBA writer Andy Bailey of Bleacher Report believes the Mavericks will trade Davis, who has been linked to the Atlanta Hawks, Toronto Raptors, Detroit Pistons, Milwaukee Bucks and Los Angeles Clippers in trade rumors.

“What makes more sense? The Dallas Mavericks hanging onto oft-injured and soon-to-be-33-year-old Anthony Davis, scratching and clawing for a play-in spot they might not even get and ending up with a 2026 draft pick in the middle of the first round? Or trading Davis, deciding there’s no reason to bring Kyrie Irving back, tanking a little bit and giving themselves a chance to add AJ Dybantsa, Cameron Boozer or Darryn Peterson to Cooper Flagg? When you look at the two options side-by-side, choosing the former almost seems unconscionable,” Bailey wrote.

“And although we saw the Mavs do the unconscionable just one short year ago, the author of the Luka Dončić trade is gone. The motivation now should be getting out of the crater that deal created. The basketball gods blessed Dallas with plenty of rope to climb by sending Flagg their way, but it needs to follow up his selection with forward-thinking moves. This is our prediction that the Mavs will do just that and move AD.”

The Mavericks (13-23) are in 11th place in the Western Conference standings. They are not a playoff contender, so it makes no sense for the franchise to keep Davis, who is better suited to play for a winning team at his stage of his career.

A future Hall of Famer, Davis is eligible for a four-year, $275 million maximum extension in August. The 2020 NBA champion with the Los Angeles Lakers will make $58.5 million next season and has a player option worth $62.8 million for the 2027-28 season.

Sources told Grant Afseth of DallasHoopsJournal that Davis will seek a contract extension from the Mavericks in the offseason if he doesn’t get traded this season. If Dallas does trade Davis, the Chicago native will pursue an extension with the team to which he is traded, which could worry teams interested in acquiring the big man, given that he turns 33 in March and has a history of health issues.

Davis is making $54.1 million this season. He’s averaging 20.4 points, 10.8 rebounds, 2.8 assists, 1.2 steals and 1.7 blocks per game while shooting 52.2% from the field, 29.4% from 3 and 72.6% from the foul line.

Rich Paul of Klutch Sports Group is Davis’ agent. Paul has sought clarity on whether the Mavericks plan to trade Davis or work out an extension, sources told Afseth.