The Anthony Davis era in Dallas is now over.
The Mavericks struck a deal to send Davis, Jaden Hardy, D’Angelo Russell and Dante Exum to the Washington Wizards for Khris Middleton, AJ Johnson, Malaki Branham, Marvin Bagley III and five draft picks, according to ESPN’s Shams Charania.
Davis was acquired in a blockbuster trade by the Mavericks along with Max Christie and a 2029 first-round pick last season in exchange for Luka Dončić, Markieff Morris and Maxi Kleber, who were traded to the Los Angeles Lakers.
Davis’ time with the Mavericks ended after he appeared in just 29 games, despite being with the team since last February. His latest setback occurred after he injured his hand on January 8 against the Utah Jazz. Although hand surgery is not required, as initially reported, Davis was still expected to miss extended time with the injury. The team opened trade talks shortly after.
In his home debut with the Mavericks last year, Davis suffered a left adductor strain after posting 26 points, 16 rebounds, 7 assists and 3 blocks. The strain sidelined him for 18 games before he returned in late March. Davis played in nine games during his first stretch with the team, and averaged 20 points, 10.1 rebounds and 4.4 assists.
With injuries to Davis and point guard Kyrie Irving, the Mavericks eventually lost in the Play-In Tournament before winning the No. 1 overall pick in the draft lottery, which they used to select then-18-year-old Duke phenom Cooper Flagg.
This season, Davis has also been sidelined for most of the year. He’s only played in a handful of games while dealing with a left calf strain and a right groin spasm as the Mavericks have largely struggled. The team fired general manager Nico Harrison earlier this season, too, after immense backlash from fans in response to the Dončić trade.
When healthy, Davis remains one of the top bigs in the league. But so far in Dallas, that just hasn’t been the case.
The Mavericks will now attempt to rebuild around Flagg and Irving, who has yet to return this season while recovering from a torn ACL injury. But with Dončić’s run in Dallas now behind him, and the return from the Dončić deal now out the door, too, it may take a while. The team seems to be headed for a much longer rebuild than initially planned.
This breaking news story will be updated.
Read the full article here