Dallas Mavericks forward Anthony Davis (3) drives to the basket while guarded by Utah Jazz forward Cody Williams (5) during the first half of a game last month.Tyler Tate/The Associated Press
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.
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.
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.
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.
Dallas Mavericks forward Cooper Flagg (32) drives the ball during a game against the Charlotte Hornets last month.Jessica Tobias/The Associated Press
The trade is a big step for Dallas toward making Cooper Flagg the next face of the franchise after Doncic.
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.
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.
Now former Mavericks GM Nico 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.