With 10 days left until the trade deadline, it’s appearing more likely that Anthony Davis will finish the season with the Mavericks, multiple league sources tell Christian Clark of The Athletic.
Davis had been considered one of the top names on this year’s trade market, with Dallas having interest in moving on from his expensive contract and starting a full rebuild around Cooper Flagg. But he has been sidelined since January 8 with ligament damage in his left hand, renewing concerns about whether he’ll ever be able to remain healthy enough for a rival team to invest in a major deal.
Davis recently began doing some on-court work while wearing a protective glove on the hand, but there’s no indication when he might return. He opted against surgery to improve his chances of playing again this season and is set to be reevaluated in late February.
Beyond the injuries, which have forced Davis to miss 26 of the Mavs’ 46 games, there are concerns that his contract might make him too much of a gamble at this point in his career. He’ll earn $58.5MM next season with a $62.8MM player option for 2027/28, and he’ll be seeking an extension when he becomes eligible on August 6, either from Dallas or his next team.
While trade talks regarding Davis have cooled, the Mavericks are getting plenty of interest in Naji Marshall, with a Western Conference scout telling Clark, “I think half the league is interested in him.” Clark states that Dallas prefers to keep Marshall, adding that it would take “something extraordinary” to pry him away.
The 28-year-old small forward is enjoying a career year in his second season with Dallas, averaging 14.7 points per game while posting a 63.5 true-shooting percentage. He has been a major bargain on his $9MM contract and will make $9.4MM next season before becoming a free agent in the summer of 2027.
Clark also examines the market for Daniel Gafford, who has received interest from teams looking to add another center, including Toronto, Atlanta and Boston.
Gafford has been limited to 30 games due to injuries, and he just returned over the weekend after missing four games with a sprained right ankle. His scoring has fallen to 7.6 PPG, his lowest number since early in his career, but he remains an accomplished lob threat and shot blocker and he’s among the league leaders in shooting percentage every season.
Last summer, Gafford signed a three-year, $54MM extension, which will begin in 2026/27. He’ll make $17.3MM, $18.1MM and $19MM over the course of that deal.
Celtics have a big trade exception that they can use. They need frontcourt help. I would be interested to see if Boston would give up Hugo Gonzalez plus their 2026 first round pick (which will be in the 20’s) plus a second in exchange for Naji and Exum. Mavs would get salary relief and an open roster spot for Nembhard’s conversion plus a young rotational player. Celtics get a big upgrade and a starting PF who can play both sides of the ball, including point forward. They would simply waive Exum’s small expiring contract. A win for both sides.
I like Naji a lot, mainly as a productive/versatile/vet forward, but also as a tough guy type security blanket for Coop for the next few yrs. That being said I’d def do that deal if I’m Dallas. Bring in young Hugo (w/ 3 more yrs of cheap team control) & another pick in this historic draft is a very good return for Naji, especially considering the cap relief. Mavs can bring Kenrich Williams back home this off-season to be Coop’s bodyguard.
Celts may say no as they would like to cut costs.
As long as the Celtics can stay below the second apron, this could work. However, I just don’t see the delusional Mavs accepting what is Anthony Davis’ true trade value. Saying that the Mavs overpaid for him is an understatement and now they can’t climb off of that tree, even though it is best for them to move on from anything that reminds the fan based of Nico Doncic
Unlikely? The Mavs are stuck with this guy.
At that salary, who are you going to send back to Dallas to accommodate him in trade?
Even a five team deal would be so complicated that bringing in Day to Davis would not be enough juice to make it worth the squeeze.
He’s constantly injured, plus he wants to negotiate an extension to his current deal this summer.
Those are two massive roadblocks for any team considering bringing him in.
Absolutely correct on all counts.
Despite his good to excellent performance when he’s healthy, I can’t imagine any team thinking he’s worth trading for at this point, especially with Rich Paul saying he wants even more $ from an acquiring team.
Yes, he’s all world when he’s healthy. Practically unguardable with his size and shooting ability plus skills around the basket. Defensively a major stud as well.
So apparently I CAN agree with you every now and then, eh?
Yes, and me with you. Good stuff.
If Davis wants to end up in a better situation ASAP probably the best thing he could do at this point is kick Paul to the curb and hope a team will trade for him purely as a rental, then worry about the extension/free agency later.
Yeah the Mavs calling every team in the league bore nothing. All the planted stories and clickbait nonsense. He’s untradable. They already got Flagg for him, that was the compensation.