Why the Anthony Davis Trade to Washington Wizards Feels Like a Dead End

According to reports, former Dallas Mavericks big man Anthony Davis wasn’t thrilled about being traded to the Washington Wizards.

Davis claims these reports were “overblown,” which comes off as not being completely false, but maybe a bit exaggerated. Regardless, what’s left of the 32-year-old will be forced to report to the Wizards, one of the worst NBA teams over the last decade.

Already, reports are surfacing that the Wizards will plan on shutting down Davis for the remainder of the season. During his one year in Dallas, Davis only played 29 total games. He’s dealing with a hand injury and a groin injury and hasn’t suited up since early January.

The Mavericks severed ties with Davis after just one year following the catastrophic failure that was the Luka Doncic trade. Moving on from the injury-prone center allows the Mavericks to build around No. 1 overall pick Cooper Flagg, who has looked the part during his rookie season.

Superstar point guard Kyrie Irving has yet to make his season debut for the Mavericks after tearing his ACL in late March of last season.

But Davis was the real loser of this trade.

His agent, Rich Paul, publicly and privately demanded that the Mavericks would find a new home for him prior to Thursday’s NBA trade deadline.

In a blockbuster deal, Davis wound up on the Wizards, who still have not won 15 games this season and currently find themselves as the No. 13 seed in the Eastern Conference.

Washington’s first-round draft pick is protected as long as they find themselves within the top eight selections. By sidelining Davis, the Wizards could continue to let their tank roll on, improving their probability of drafting one of college basketball’s biggest stars this offseason.

After this season, Davis is owed two very large sums of money on his deal with the Wizards that should keep him in Washington over the next two seasons. By shutting down Davis, the Wizards are planning for the long term, where they’ll hope he can get healthy and contribute on a young roster next season.

The Wizards are awful, but they do have a little bit of young talent.

They’ve invested draft picks into Alex Sarr, who could pair nicely with Davis in Washington’s front court next season. Bub Carrington and Bilal Coulibaly are one of the worst backcourt duos in the league, but individually, they are decent role players. Kyshawn George and Shariffe Cooper are both capable of surprises, also.

Washington will need to keep their fingers crossed that their ping pong ball strikes gold in the NBA Draft Lottery. Adding Darryn Peterson or AJ Dybantsa to the young core will help the Wizards grow quickly.

The Wizards will also keep their fingers crossed that Davis can give them any production. In the last decade, David played in over 60 games just once, appearing in 76 games with the Los Angeles Lakers in 2023. If the Wizards can get that All-Star version of Davis, this trade looks like a steal.

But even with Davis healthy, how will the Wizards be much better unless they land Peterson or Dybantsa? 

Davis should be thanking LeBron James for that championship they won together in the NBA bubble. Now on the most irrelevant team in the NBA, Davis will spend the rest of the regular season in the shadows instead of contending for more titles.