The Anthony Davis Trade Just Took a Crazy Turn

The Anthony Davis Trade Just Took a Crazy Turn

Chemistry is a delicate thing to try to mess with there if you’re the Detroit Pist. What do you think of that trade for Anthony Davis? I would do it if I was the Pistons. I like Detroit. I ain’t mad at him going to Detroit. I’m rolling. Anthony Davis to the to the Raptors. That’s what That’s what you want to happen. That’s what you It’s a possibility he might go to the Raptor. We need to talk about what just happened with Anthony Davis because it changes everything that we’ve been discussing on this channel. Rich Paul, AD’s agent, just walked into a meeting with the Mavericks front office and basically said, “I need answers. are you extending my client this summer or are you trading him before the deadline because we need to know what’s going on over here. And the Maverick’s response was absolutely insane. They just told Rich that they want to keep their options open. Keep our options open. That’s office speak for we really don’t have any idea what we’re doing right now. And by the end of this video, you’re going to understand why Dallas is paralyzed right now. Now look, we’ve talked about the Luca Donuch trade on this YouTube channel. We’ve talked about Nico Harrison getting fired. We broken down all the potential trade destinations, but here’s what nobody is talking about, and this is the thing that’s actually going to determine whether AD stays in Dallas or gets moved. The NBA’s new collective bargaining agreement has fundamentally changed how teams evaluate star players. And I’m about to show you why Anthony Davis might be completely trapped in Dallas, whether he wants to be there or not. So, real quick before we get to the content, we’re still running jersey giveaways on this channel. All you have to do to enter, subscribe and turn on my notifications for this channel and be one of the first people to comment what jersey you want in the comment section down below. And now that we got all that out of the way, cue the intro. Mic check 1212. What’s going on everybody? So get this. According to Brian Winhorse, executives around the league aren’t just hesitant about Anthony Davis because of his injuries. They’re hesitant because of what happens to their team building flexibility if they take on that contract. The apron rules have changed everything. And Dallas, they already have more than $300 million committed for next season. One wrong move and they could set themselves back for years. It’s not like they’ve already done that already, but they can somehow set themselves back even worse than they already have. So, let’s break down the $275 million question that’s hanging over this entire situation. We’re going to talk about what Rich Paul actually said in that meeting. We’re going to explain why the CBA makes this so complicated. I’m going to give you three realistic scenarios for how this ends and why none of them are really good for Dallas. All right, so let’s start with what actually happened in this meeting because the details here are crucial. According to Sham Shrananya, Rich Paul met with the Dallas Mavericks interim co-general managers Michael Finley and Matt Ricardi. And Rich Paul came in with one simple question. What’s the plan? Very valid question to ask whenever your entire team is in flux? Because here’s what a lot of people don’t realize. On August 6th, 2026, that’s this coming summer, Anthony Davis is eligible to sign a 4-year, $275 million max extension. That contract would pay him $76 million in his age 37 season. Let me say that again so it really sinks in. $76 million at age 37. For a guy who’s already been dealing with chronic injury issues, that’s the decision that Dallas has to make. Wow. Sounds like a really tough decision if you ask me. Now, here’s what Finley and Ricardi told Rich Paul. They said that the franchise wants to keep its options open and see how the team plays for the next few weeks. They have not ruled out the possibility of an extension. Translation is, “Bro, we don’t know what to do with you. Cooper Flag has played more games for us since your client has joined our team last year, but we’re going to watch him play for a little bit and then come to a decision.” And honestly, I get why Dallas is hesitant because this isn’t just about whether Anthony Davis is good enough. It’s about whether committing $275 million to a 33-year-old with his injury history is the right move for a franchise that’s supposed to be building around Cooper Flag. But here’s where it gets really complicated, and this is the part that’s going to blow your mind when I explain the CBA stuff in a minute. If Dallas doesn’t extend him and they can’t find a trade partner willing to take on that contract, what happens? Davis can decline his $62.8 million player option in 2027 and just walk away for nothing. The Mavericks would have traded Luca Donuch, a generational talent, for essentially two years of Anthony Davis sitting in a training room. That’s the nightmare scenario, and it’s way more realistic than people would like to admit. Okay, so now let’s get to the stuff that people are really missing about the situation. And this is important, so just stay with me here. What I’m about to explain is the reason why the trade market for Anthony Davis isn’t what you think it is. And this completely changes everything. Brian Winhorse reported that the trade market for Anthony Davis is fundamentally limited by the new CBA. And here’s the key. It’s not just about whether teams want him. It’s about whether teams can take on his contract without destroying their roster flexibility for years to come. Davis has approximately $120 million remaining on his deal. That’s massive money. And in the old NBA, teams would just absorb that and figure it out later. You worry about winning first and cap space second, right? But the new CBA has aprons and they have completely changed how front offices think about star acquisitions. So, let me break this down real quick for those of you who don’t follow the salary cap stuff closely. The second apron is basically a hard cap that teams cannot exceed. And if you’re above it, you face severe team building penalties. We’re talking restrictions on signin trades, limits on using trade exceptions. You can’t aggregate salaries and trades the way you used to. It fundamentally handicaps your ability to improve your roster for years. And do you remember how I said Dallas has over $300 million committed for next season? Here’s why that matters. The extensions that the Mavericks gave PJ Washington and Daniel Gaffford earlier this year have limited their flexibility. So here’s the problem. If they trade Davis and get back a lottery pick for 2026 along with matching salary, they could face second apron issues that restrict what they can do for the next several years. An Eastern Conference executive said that they have to be careful what they do with AD because they could set themselves back for years with the wrong deal. I just love the nomenclature that they use whenever they’re trying to describe the wrong deal for Anthony Davis and setting themselves back for years. It’s not like they’re not experienced in setting back their franchise for years already. But this is not about basketball fit. This is not about whether the young players that they receive in return are good enough. This is about salary cap structure. The wrong trade could completely hamstring this franchise through Cooper Flag’s entire rookie contract. And it’s not just Dallas dealing with this problem. The team that might want Davis, they’re facing the exact same restrictions. One of the top teams that are linked to Anthony Davis are the Detroit Pistons. The Detroit Pistons have become the best team in the Eastern Conference. Coming into this season, we were wondering, is this going to be the year that the New York Knicks or the Orlando Magic finally become the face of the Eastern Conference with Jason Tatum out with a torn Achilles and Tyrese Hallebertton tearing his Achilles in game seven of the NBA Finals. But no, it ended up being the Detroit Pistons who are the face of the East at the time that we’re making this video. And there are rumors that they’re still willing to improve. I mean, look at the Houston Rockets of last year. They finished number two in the Western Conference and they still traded for Kevin Durant in the offseason. But Detroit is trying to preserve flexibility around their young core. They’ve got a good thing going. Why would they take on a $120 million contract for an injury-prone 32-year-old and potentially mess that up? The other two teams linked to Davis, the Atlanta Hawks, and the Toronto Raptors have concerns as well. Atlanta has to think about what happens when Trey Young needs his extension. Toronto is being careful about long-term commitments because they’re still trying to figure out their direction. even though they’re currently fifth in the East and can easily climb as high as third or even second depending on how their season goes. So, the argument for these Eastern Conference teams, primarily teams like Toronto or Detroit, is the fact that the East is a little bit weaker this year. The Milwaukee Bucks aren’t a factor. The Boston Celtics are definitely overachieving. But the Toronto Raptors might have a brief window of opportunity to make a push to the top of the Eastern Conference. And the same could be said about the Atlanta Hawks. They’re the ninth seed at the time that I’m making this video, but they’re about two games back from third place in the Eastern Conference. Listen to what this Western Conference executive told ESPN about Davis specifically. For a guy like Anthony Davis, it’s hard to justify them getting a 35% max when they aren’t playing a ton of minutes in games. That quote is brutal, but it’s real. Teams aren’t willing to give up massive packages for guys with durability questions anymore. The apron era has made everyone more conservative. Sources told Brian Winhorse it might take a player of Giannis Antakmpo’s caliber, someone still in their prime and relatively healthy to command a truly massive package in this new environment. Anthony Davis at 32 with his injury history, he just doesn’t move the needle the same way anymore. Now, here’s what the Mavericks are actually doing to try and figure this out. And I think this part is really interesting. Mav’s owner, Patrick Dumont, has essentially created what reporters are calling a showcase period for Davis. He told the medical staff to be extra cautious bringing Davis back from his calf injury. He doesn’t want to rush anything. He wants to see Davis healthy and performing at a high level before making any decisions about extensions or trades. And look, I get why people would think the Dallas Mavericks are being a little messed up here. Anthony Davis wants to know his future. Rich Paul is trying to get clarity for his client. Nobody likes being in limbo. But from Dallas’s perspective, they just fired their GM for making rash decisions. And they’re not about to make another one. The question becomes, what does Davis actually need to show them? And more importantly, can he do it? Because when he’s on the court this season, it’s been inconsistent. He had a stretch where he averaged over 20 points and 11 rebounds. He dropped 29 on the Rockets on 14 of 19 shooting, which is a great game. But the very next game against OKC, he went 1 for9 and couldn’t score in the first three quarters. That’s the problem. One night he looks like a top 10 player in the league. The next night, he completely disappears. And with his injury history, you genuinely never know which version you’re getting on any given week or if he’s even going to be available at all. The Mavericks need to see sustained excellence, multiple weeks of health, consistent production, and so far Davis hasn’t been able to string that together since arriving in Dallas. Every time it looks like he’s turning a corner, something else happens. But here’s the thing that’s even more concerning. Some people around the league aren’t even sure the reported interest in Davis is real. And that’s what we need to talk about next. All right, so here’s something that I think is really important to consider, and this is some newer reporting that puts all of this into a different context. NBA insider Brett Seagull brought up a question that I think is absolutely worth asking. Is all this reported interest even real? The big question is, is this Rich Paul trying to create a market for Anthony Davis? Is it the Mavericks trying to say, hey, there’s interest out there to get teams to offer their best assets? because each of those teams that have been mentioned have something the Mavericks would want. Think about that for a second. Is this actual trade interest or is this just agents in the front office trying to manipulate the media just so they could get the best return possible? Because when you actually talk to people around the league, the story sounds way different than the headlines. Sam Hammock from The Athletic reported that the actual level of interest from these Eastern Conference suitors remains unclear, particularly given Davis’s injury history. Multiple league sources expressed skepticism about a robust market for Davis this trade season. So, we’ve got the Pistons, Hawks, and Raptors reportedly interested. That’s what the headlines say. But when you actually talk to people around the league, nobody’s really sure how serious that interest is. Teams are shifting towards younger, faster, and deeper rosters under the new CBA restrictions. Anthony Davis at 32 with injury concerns doesn’t exactly fit that mold. And here’s what Seagull predicted about the timing. If Anthony Davis or the Mavericks are to make a big move, it won’t come until right at the trade deadline. We’re talking February 3rd, fourth, or fifth. I wouldn’t expect any significant move unless they were able to get a huge trade package, which has not come to them. So, we might be waiting until the absolute last possible moment to see what actually happens here. And by then, Davis’s value could be even lower if he has another injury setback. With every day that passes, this situation gets exponentially more complicated. All right, so I told you in the beginning of the video that I was going to give you three realistic outcomes for what’s going to happen to this Anthony Davis situation. So, let’s game this out. What are the actual paths forward here? The first scenario is AD gets his extension. The Mavericks decide that they can’t get enough value in a trade and they don’t want Davis walking for nothing in 2027. So, they commit to the 4-year, $275 million extension. Davis stays in Dallas. They try to build around him and Cooper Flag together and they just pray that he can stay healthy. The problem is that $76 million contract at age 37. We keep coming back to that number because it’s insane. And with the way that Davis has broken down over the years, that contract could become an absolute albatross that prevents Dallas from building a real contender around Cooper Flag. You’re essentially betting that Anthony Davis ages better than he has any reason to age based on his history. Which brings us to the second scenario. Anthony Davis gets traded at the deadline. Dallas finds a trade partner willing to take on his contract before February 6th. They get back some combination of young players and picks that fit the Cooper flag timeline better. They move on and start fresh. The problem is, as we’ve discussed, the market isn’t great. Teams are being super cautious because of the CBA restrictions. Dallas might have to accept a package that feels underwhelming for a player who was supposed to justify trading Luca Donuch. And given how the Luca trade is already perceived around the league, another losing trade could be absolutely devastating for this franchise’s reputation. The third scenario is nothing happens. Davis plays out this season. The Mavericks don’t extend him. They don’t trade him. They just reassess everything in the summer when more teams might have cap space. Maybe the market is better then. Maybe Davis has a healthy finish to the season that rebuilds his value. The problem is every single month that passes, Anthony Davis gets older. Every game he misses with injury, his value drops a little more. And if he gets seriously hurt between now and summer, like actually seriously hurt, his value could crater to the point where he’s genuinely untradable. Then Dallas is stuck either giving him that extension anyway or watching him walk out the door for absolutely nothing. None of these scenarios are good. That’s the reality of the situation that Dallas has created for themselves. They’re just trying to pick the least bad option at this point. And here’s what I keep coming back to when I think about this whole situation. No, not that Nico Harrison’s completely destroyed the Dallas Mavericks because that’s obvious. But this is a perfect example of how the NBA’s new economy has completely changed everything about how franchises operate. A few years ago, you trade for Anthony Davis and you figure out the contract stuff later. You worry about winning first and cap space second. That’s how it used to work. But now, the aprons have forced teams to think completely differently about these decisions. Listen to what this scout told Wendy. The aprons are causing people to think and act differently, but there will always be teams that decide to strike while the iron’s hot. It’s an even bigger riskreward calculation than it’s ever been. Riskreward. That’s all it comes down to. For the Pistons, is the risk of taking on Davis’s contract and potentially handicapping their cap worth the reward of maybe, just maybe, making a finals run this year? For the Hawks, is adding Davis worth giving up pieces of their young core when he might not even be healthy for the playoffs? for the Mavericks is extending Davis for $275 million worth the risk of that contract being a complete disaster when Cooper Flag is finally ready to compete for championships. Nobody has good answers to these questions right now. And that’s exactly why Rich Paul walked out of that meeting without the clarity he wanted because the Mavericks genuinely don’t know what to do. And honestly, I’m not sure anybody does. Let me know in the comment section down below what do you guys think the Dallas Mavericks should do with Anthony Davis. Aside from that, I don’t know if you heard, but Jonathan Kaminga is not happy in Golden State again with Draymond Green, Al Horford, and Steph Curry out versus the Chicago Bulls. The Golden State Warriors decided to bench Jonathan Kaminga. I have a completely separate video on that. I’m going to leave it in the end screen. I’ll meet you guys there. I’m your boy Mike and I’m dropping our mic until our next upload.

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