Mavericks Urged to Make Blockbuster Anthony Davis Trade This Offseason

Mavericks Urged to Make Blockbuster Anthony Davis Trade This Offseason originally appeared on Athlon Sports.

The Dallas Mavericks won the 2025 NBA Draft Lottery, so they have the first pick in this year's draft. 

The Mavericks are expected to select Duke star Cooper Flagg with the first overall pick. 

Once Flagg gets drafted, Dallas will have Flagg, Kyrie Irving, Anthony Davis and Klay Thompson as its top players. 

The Mavericks missed the playoffs this season after making the NBA Finals last year. Nico Harrison traded Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers in February, acquiring Davis and Max Christie in return. 

Irving is expected to miss a lot of time next season recovering from his left ACL tear, so Dallas may struggle in the 2025-26 season despite having Davis, Thompson and (most likely) Flagg. 

With that said, Dan Favale of Bleacher Report is urging the Mavericks to trade Davis this offseason. 

“It makes more sense for Dallas to trade Davis for a future-focused package teeming with picks and prospects and enter the rebuilding phase they should have initiated when shipping out Luka Doncic,” Favale wrote. 

Davis played in just nine regular-season games with the Mavericks after the Doncic trade due to an adductor injury. He put up 20.0 points, 10.1 rebounds, 4.4 assists, 0.6 steals and 2.2 blocks per game.

A future Hall of Famer, Davis is 32 years old with a history of getting hurt. He will make $54.1 million next season and $58.5 million in 2026-27.

Davis has a player option worth $62.8 million for the 2027-28 season. He has suited up for the New Orleans Pelicans, Lakers and Mavericks, collecting career averages of 24.1 points, 10.7 rebounds, 2.6 assists, 1.3 steals and 2.3 blocks.

“Building around Flagg should be the Mavs’ top priority,” Favale wrote. “Plopping him into a situation where, as of now, they need him to be no worse than the co-lead ball-handler of a team the C-Suite fancies a contender runs in stark contrast to that—and likely the reality of Dallas’ position inside the Western Conference.”

The odds of Harrison trading Davis are very low considering the two men have a strong relationship. 

However, Harrison did trade Doncic out of the blue, so anything is technically possible. 

Related: Mavericks Predicted to Add 12-Time All-Star This Offseason

This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 24, 2025, where it first appeared.