Anthony Davis is in a familiar, yet unexpected situation.
He’s playing the center position full-time for the shorthanded Mavericks, who once boasted enough frontcourt depth to pose an argument for having the best trio of big men in the NBA.
That potent trio gradually became singular because of injuries. Dereck Lively II won’t play for the remainder of the year. Daniel Gafford is day-to-day with a lingering right ankle sprain.
Davis has started eight of his last 11 games at center and it appears that’ll remain the case going as long as the team’s traditional centers are sidelined. The news of Lively needing season-ending surgery to repair his right foot injury was an unfortunate blow to the Mavericks, but the mission remains the same for Davis.
Mavericks
“Play basketball,” Davis said after Friday’s win over the Brooklyn Nets. “Injuries are a part of the game. Obviously, it sucks to have a guy like that who is a big part of our team on both ends of the floor. We obviously want him to get healthy and come back even better and stronger. Our job is to continue to play and figure it out until we get healthy. Just go from there. Just play basketball and try to keep stacking wins.”
Related
The Mavericks are playing their best basketball of the season as winners of five of their last six games. Davis has provided a consistent presence on offense and defense since his return form a left calf strain, averaging 19.3 points and 10.8 rebounds with 1.2 steals and 2.0 blocks in his last six games. And those numbers are within the parameters of a minutes restriction as he hasn’t played more than 33 minutes since his return.
It’s widely known that Davis prefers the power forward position. Before the season began, Davis explained the rationale of his preference and said playing center for an extended period of time, whether that’s for an entire game or season, takes a toll on his body.
He’s played 91% of his minutes at center this season, which is the fourth-highest mark of his career after playing 100% in 2022-23 with the Los Angeles Lakers, 97% in 2023-24, and 96% during his final season in New Orleans in 2018-19.
Davis’ return to center on a full-time basis aren’t the circumstances he expected when he was traded to Dallas in February, but it’s a circumstance he’s thriving in, according to Mavericks coach Jason Kidd.
“He has no choice,” Kidd said. “Just showing his ability to do whatever it takes for the team to compete. … He’s getting healthy. You can see he’s playing at a higher level for us and we need that. It makes us better.”
Davis stuffed the statsheet with a team-high 24 points, 14 rebounds, three assists, three steals and two blocks in Friday’s win over Brooklyn. He scored 20 points in the second half of that game despite Brooklyn’s attempt to deny him the ball in the first half.
Nets coach Jordi Fernandez praised Davis’ ability to shuffle between the two positions before the game.
“The thing is he’s a great player and a great player is always impactful,” Fernandez said. “The thing is he is not just a great player playing one position, he’s a great player playing two. A great weapon to have out there, a guy that can shoot, face up, that can get to the rim and play pick and roll, all those things that’s why he is who he is.”
As long as Gafford remains out, Kidd will be forced to use Davis at the center position and there’s no guarantee that will change when Gafford returns. Kidd used Gafford as Davis’ backup during his last game against Miami on Dec. 3.
“That was one of our deepest positions,” Kidd said. “Now, we have DP [Dwight Powell] and Moussa [Cisse] and AD. If we have to go small, it’s Naji [Marshall] and PJ [Washington]. Just understanding what AD means to us, but he’s playing at a high level.”
As long as Davis remains healthy and continues to play at this level, the Mavericks will have a good chance of winning games.
On Twitter/X: @MikeACurtis2
Find more Mavericks coverage from The Dallas Morning News here.