02/04/26 03:04:00
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02/04 15:03 CST Wizards acquiring Anthony Davis from Mavericks in 8-player
trade, AP source says
Wizards acquiring Anthony Davis from Mavericks in 8-player trade, AP source says
By SCHUYLER DIXON
AP Sports Writer
DALLAS (AP) --- The Washington Wizards are acquiring Anthony Davis in an
eight-player trade with the Mavericks that includes draft picks for Dallas, a
person with knowledge of the deal said Wednesday.
The move is a signal the Mavericks are moving on from the widely criticized
trade that sent superstar Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers for a package
headlined by Davis last year.
Former general manager Nico Harrison, who was fired by Dallas in November,
engineered the middle-of-the-night deal that angered fans. Trade speculation
had surrounded Davis ever since Harrison was let go following a slow start to
the season.
The Wizards are sending Khris Middleton, AJ Johnson, Malaki Branham and Marvin
Bagley III to the Mavericks along with two first-round draft picks and three
second-rounders, according to the person who spoke to The Associated Press on
condition of anonymity because the deal had yet to be approved by the NBA.
Washington is getting three guards from Dallas in Jaden Hardy, D'Angelo Russell
and Dante Exum.
The Wizards have made a stark shift recently from their rebuild after losing 67
and 64 games the past two seasons. Washington traded for Trae Young last month
and now adds Davis to a group of young players that includes big man Alex Sarr,
the No. 2 pick in 2024.
It's not clear if Young or Davis will play much this season, which could be for
the best given the Wizards lose their top draft pick this year if it falls
outside No. 8.
Still, a deal like this suggests Washington is ready to move on from the phase
of waiting for lottery luck. A 2026-27 team with Davis, Young, Sarr and other
complementary players could be interesting in the Eastern Conference, although
health is always a concern with somebody like Davis.
The 10-time All-Star has been out since Jan. 8 with a left hand injury and
wasn't expected to return before the All-Star break later this month.
Harrison's Doncic-for-Davis deal was so heavily criticized because he took on
the big man with an extensive injury history while giving up a generational
talent in his prime. Doncic was 25 at the time of the trade.
As might have been expected, Davis appeared in just 31 of a possible 84 games
over two partial seasons with the Mavericks, including the two play-in
tournament games he played last season.
The 32-year-old's ailments included a core muscle issue and a calf strain
before Davis injured his hand while defending a driving Lauri Markkanen of Utah
last month.
The trade is a big step for Dallas toward making Cooper Flagg the next face of
the franchise after Doncic. The rookie No. 1 pick set an NBA scoring record for
a teenager with 49 points against Charlotte last week, and the 19-year-old is
on a three-game streak of 30-point games, another league first for the under-20
group.
Flagg, who is averaging 20.1 points per game a year after leading Duke to the
Final Four as just the fourth freshman to be named the AP men's basketball
player of the year, doesn't turn 20 until next season.
The Mavericks lost all three games on Flagg's current 30-plus run and are on a
five-game skid, a season worst. Dallas is 12th in the West at 19-31, making it
increasingly unlikely that guard Kyrie Irving will play this season. The
nine-time All-Star tore the ACL in his left knee last March.
Dallas is likely to miss the playoffs for the second consecutive season since
Doncic and Irving led them to the 2024 NBA Finals. Boston won that series in
five games.
Harrison traded Doncic believing that Davis, an elite player at both ends of
the court, could pair with Irving to keep the Mavericks in contention for
several years. Instead, Davis and Irving shared the court just once before
Davis exited with an aggravation of his abdominal injury in the third quarter
of his Dallas debut. Irving injured his knee less than a month later.
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AP Sports Writer Noah Trister in Washington contributed to this report.
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AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/NBA
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