The Dallas Mavericks have not been the most competitive team in the NBA for the 2025-26 season. Their best player, Anthony Davis, has struggled with injuries this year, appearing in only five games. Davis is dealing with a calf injury and is set to miss his 14th straight game on Monday against the Miami Heat. Amid all this, there have been rumors about a potential trade centered around him.
However, minority owner Mark Cuban expressed the Mavericks’ commitment to Davis. According to him, they have no plans to trade him away. Cuban said that the organization wants to build a competitive team around AD to help him and the group contend for an NBA title.
ESPN’s Tim Bontemps reported on Monday that there aren’t a lot of teams lining up to trade for the often-injured star. According to Bontemps, AD’s massive $63 million player option is discouraging for most franchises.
“I shouldn’t say it’s not gonna happen… but, you talk to people in the league, there’s not a lot of teams that are lining up to take on a 35-year-old Anthony Davis making $63 million, and you have to assume that he’s gonna opt into that deal,” Bontemps said in the latest episode of “The Hoop Collective.”
NBA teams are not lining up to trade for Anthony Davis, per @TimBontemps
“I shouldn't say it's not gonna happen… but, you talk to people in the league, there's not a lot of teams that are lining up to take on a 35-year-old Anthony Davis making $63 million, and you have to… pic.twitter.com/vvZhsIngtq
— Legion Hoops (@LegionHoops) November 24, 2025
Anthony Davis is still in the first year of his three-year, $175 million contract. By the time his player option is available, he’ll be 34 years old. Not a lot of teams want to pursue an aging star who’s often injured and give him a massive payday.
Despite having established himself as one of the league’s top players, Davis’s injury history has diminished his worth.
Jason Kidd gave an encouraging update on Anthony Davis
Mavericks owner Patrick Dumont wants to make sure Anthony Davis is 100% before he returns from injury. According to head coach Jason Kidd, there’s a chance Davis could return to practice sometime this week.
“He continues to get better,” Kidd said. “He’s working to get back. We’re anticipating him at practice this week, so any time you have a calf strain, you have to be cautious, but he has worked extremely hard. The next step is practice Wednesday, and we’ll see what happens after that.”
The Mavericks are set to start their four-game road trip on Monday. If things go well at the team practice on Wednesday, fans might see him back at Crypto.com Arena against the Los Angeles Lakers. But the final call will depend on how well Davis does in practice.
Throughout the team’s road trip, the veteran star will be with the team on the bench.
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Reign also writes NBA and WNBA news updates on Sportskeeda. He started as a feature writer for AirAlamo, an NBA website that covers the San Antonio Spurs. Some of his work can also be seen on Valley of the Suns, a Phoenix Suns-centric website, where he served as a contributing writer.
