Anthony Davis is getting a second opinion but appears to have sustained ligament damage in his left hand that could require surgery and will likely keep him out past the Feb. 5 NBA Trade deadline, a story first reported by Shams Charania and Tim MacMahon of ESPN and since confirmed by other reports.
Those reports suggest Davis will miss “months,” which would effectively end the idea he might get traded at the deadline. Concerns about his injury history are part of why there was a limited market for Davis to begin with.
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The injury occurred on what appeared to be an innocent play late in Thursday’s Utah win over Dallas. Lauri Markkanen drove baseline on Davis, and as Davis bodied him up, he got his hand caught up in Markkanen’s jersey, and it bent or twisted on him. AD was clearly in considerable pain and left the game to go back to the locker room.
Davis, who came to Dallas as the primary return in the Luka Dončić trade (an unfair burden for him), has played well when healthy this season, averaging 20.4 points on 50.6% shooting, grabbing 11.1 rebounds per game, and playing high-level defense in the paint. When healthy, Davis remains an All-Star, maybe an All-NBA level player. He has been the focus of trade rumors as the Mavericks look to pivot to building around No. 1 pick Cooper Flagg.
One thing to watch is how Davis’ injury affects a possible return by Kyrie Irving this season. If Davis is out for a significant period of time, do the Mavericks pull the plug on this season?