Anthony Davis has ligament damage in his left hand, and the Dallas Mavericks’ oft-injured big man could be facing an extended absence, a person with knowledge of the injury told The Associated Press on Friday.
Davis was injured late in a 116-114 loss at the Utah Jazz on Thursday night. The 10-time All-Star was in obvious pain on the bench before going to the locker room. Further testing revealed the extent of the damage, the person told the AP on condition of anonymity because details of the injury haven’t been publicly revealed.
The latest injury for Davis is a significant development for the Mavericks as they try to figure out how to move on from the trade for Davis that sent young superstar Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers 11 months ago.
General manager Nico Harrison, the orchestrator of the deal, was fired in November after Dallas got off to a slow start. The Mavericks are 10 games under .500 and out of the playoff picture less than two years after playing in the NBA Finals.
There has been speculation about Davis getting traded again, but most of that has been predicated on him being healthy. The hand injury could sideline him until after the Feb. 5 trade deadline. Davis is averaging 20.4 points and 11.1 rebounds per game.
The 32-year-old Davis has missed 18 of the Mavericks’ 38 games this season with calf and groin injuries. He was nursing an abdominal injury when the Mavericks traded for him last February, and he re-aggravated it in his Dallas debut. Davis was sidelined for the next 18 games.
Another injury to Dallas also could affect the franchise’s decision on when Kyrie Irving returns from last season’s knee injury. It’s possible the nine-time All-Star guard won’t play at all in 2025-26. Irving tore the ACL in his left knee on March 3 last year.
No. 1 overall pick Cooper Flagg has shown plenty of promise as a rookie, but the Mavs have little hope of moving up in the standings without Davis and Irving. Dallas controls its first-round pick in this year’s draft but not the next four drafts. The Mavericks have the Lakers’ first-rounder in 2029 from the Doncic deal.
The last time Dallas was focused on the draft at this point in a season, the club was on the verge of getting Doncic in 2018. The Mavericks had the fifth overall pick and made a trade with Atlanta, which selected Doncic at No. 3 while Dallas picked Trae Young for the Hawks.
Despite the trade of Doncic to the Lakers and the lengthy injury absences for Davis and Irving last season, Dallas made the play-in tournament and beat Sacramento before losing to Memphis for the No. 8 seed in the playoffs. Missing the postseason bumped the Mavericks to the draft lottery, which they won despite having just a 1.8% chance.
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This story has been corrected to show the Mavericks have played 38 games this season, not 31.
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