The Dallas Mavericks have been in turmoil ever since former general manager Nico Harrison traded Luka Doncic away for Anthony Davis last February. The team lucked out by landing Cooper Flagg in the lottery, but their performance has fallen off a cliff since then.
Advertisement
The Mavs also had to endure losing Kyrie Irving to a torn ACL and being totally unsure what they’re getting from Davis, who has missed as many games as he’s played this season. And the Mavs are just 13-23 on the season and in 12th place in the Western Conference.
This slide led to the firing of Harrison in November, and it is widely believed that they will trade AD before next month’s deadline. That would perhaps exorcise the collective fanbase’s negative feelings and reset around Flagg for the future. That said, not everyone is aboard the ‘Trade AD’ train.
Despite Dallas’ awful record, the play-in spot is still within reach. And with Kyrie scheduled to come back relatively soon, some folks believe the team should wait until he gets back before making any rash decisions.
In a game called ‘Push or Pivot’ on the latest episode of All the Smoke, Matt Barnes, Steven Jackson, and Vernon Maxwell all advocated for keeping AD and seeing how this plays out.
“I’ma push,” Jackson said. “Because you’re gonna get Kyrie back. I think at this point in AD’s career, you know what he’s gonna be… You bring Kyrie back with the young Cooper Flagg and the team they got, I think, just push through it this year and see if it can come together. I don’t think you can get somebody else in that would do what AD does, but also complement the team like he does.”
The issue is that Davis just can’t stay on the floor. If he were more durable, this probably wouldn’t even be a question. When he plays, AD is still a game-changing force that any team would love to have. Maxwell said the Mavs should keep him too, but added, “S***, he gotta play more games, man.”
All three were shocked to find out that Davis is only 32 years old. It feels like he’s been around so long since he declared for the 2012 draft after winning the national title in his freshman season at Kentucky. But his persistent injury issues have also made him seem older than he is.
Davis is under contract with the Mavs this year and next, and he has a player option in 2027-28. He’s set to make over $175 million in those three years. According to ESPN’s Tim MacMahon, Davis wants to stay in Dallas, but is also open to going somewhere that would give him an extension.
MacMahon:
“AD’s preference would be to stay in Dallas and to get that extension this summer…the Mavericks are trying to generate a good trade market for Anthony Davis. That is difficult because of the durability issues, and I think more so the dollars. In a situation like this… pic.twitter.com/YVV9zUByt2
— Oh No He Didn’t (@ohnohedidnt24) January 5, 2026
Nico Harrison got run out on a rail for trading Luka Doncic away for Davis. If another GM extends him beyond his current deal to pay him max money into his late 30s, then they might be joining Harrison on the bread line.
Even when Kyrie returns, the Mavericks aren’t going anywhere. Could they make the play-in? Sure, but that isn’t saying much. Could they win it and get to the playoffs? Why not? Anything can happen in a one- or two-game scenario.
But even if they got in as a 7- or 8-seed, there’s not a world in which they have a fighting chance against teams like the Thunder or the Spurs.
The Mavs were given a gift when they won the lottery. Flagg is the future, and that’s all they need to think about. Trade Davis away to anyone keen to invest in him and his ailing health, trade Kyrie while you’re at it, and start fresh next year.
