Mavs, Wizards conjure up Davis deal

DALLAS — The Washington Wizards are acquiring Anthony Davis in an eight-player trade with the Mavericks that includes draft picks for Dallas, a person with knowledge of the deal said Wednesday.

The move is a signal the Mavericks are moving on from the widely criticized trade that sent superstar Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers for a package headlined by Davis last year.

Former general manager Nico Harrison, who was fired by Dallas in November, engineered the middle-of-the-night deal that angered fans. Trade speculation had surrounded Davis ever since Harrison was let go, following a slow start to the season.

The Wizards are sending Khris Middleton, AJ Johnson, Malaki Branham and Marvin Bagley III to the Mavericks, along with two first-round draft picks and three second-rounders, according to the person who spoke to reporters on condition of anonymity because the deal had yet to be approved by the NBA.

Washington is getting three guards from Dallas in Jaden Hardy, D'Angelo Russell and Dante Exum.

The Wizards have made a stark shift recently from their rebuild after losing 67 and 64 games, respectively, the past two seasons. Washington traded for Trae Young last month and now adds Davis to a group of young players that includes big man Alex Sarr, the No 2 pick in 2024.

It's not clear if Young or Davis will play much this season, which could be for the best, given the Wizards lose their top draft pick this year if it falls outside No 8.

Still, a deal like this suggests Washington is ready to move on from the phase of waiting for lottery luck. A 2026-27 team with Davis, Young, Sarr and other complementary players could be interesting in the Eastern Conference, although health is always a concern with somebody like Davis.

The 10-time All-Star has been out since Jan 8 with a left hand injury and wasn't expected to return before the All-Star break later this month.

Harrison's Doncic-for-Davis deal was so heavily criticized because he took on the big man with an extensive injury history while giving up a generational talent in his prime. Doncic was 25 at the time of the trade.

As might have been expected, Davis appeared in just 31 of a possible 84 games over two partial seasons with the Mavericks, including the two play-in tournament games he played last season.

The 32-year-old's ailments included a core muscle issue and a calf strain, before Davis injured his hand while defending a driving Lauri Markkanen of Utah last month.

The trade is a big step for Dallas toward making Cooper Flagg the next face of the franchise after Doncic. The rookie No 1 pick set an NBA scoring record for a teenager with 49 points against Charlotte last week, and the 19-year-old is on a three-game streak of 30-point games, another league first for the under-20 group.

Flagg, who is averaging 20.1 points per game a year after leading Duke to the Final Four as just the fourth freshman to be named the AP men's basketball player of the year, doesn't turn 20 until next season.

The Mavericks lost all three games on Flagg's current 30-plus run and are on a five-game skid, a season worst. Dallas is 12th in the West at 19-31, making it increasingly unlikely that guard Kyrie Irving will play this season. The nine-time All-Star tore the ACL in his left knee last March.

Dallas is likely to miss the playoffs for the second consecutive season since Doncic and Irving led them to the 2024 NBA Finals. Boston won that series in five games.

Harrison traded Doncic believing that Davis, an elite player at both ends of the court, could pair with Irving to keep the Mavericks in contention for several years. Instead, Davis and Irving shared the court just once before Davis exited with an aggravation of his abdominal injury in the third quarter of his Dallas debut. Irving injured his knee less than a month later.

Several deals came ahead of Thursday's NBA trade deadline for this season, with Milwaukee's Greek star Giannis Antetokounmpo and Ja Morant of Memphis the biggest names also expected to be on the move.

Harden's LA exit official

The Cleveland Cavaliers made their deal for James Harden official on Wednesday, a day after multiple reports revealed the 11-time NBA All-Star guard was leaving the Los Angeles Clippers for the Cavs in exchange for guard Darius Garland.

"James Harden has cemented himself as an all-time great in this league and he adds another elite playmaker and All-NBA talent to our roster," Cavs president of basketball operations Koby Altman said.

"We're excited about the impact he will have on our group and our championship aspirations. His presence will elevate our offense, create opportunities for teammates and bring valuable playoff experience at both ends of the floor."

Harden has averaged 25.4 points, 8.1 assists, 4.8 rebounds and 1.3 steals with the Clippers this season.

Paul heads to Toronto

Another ESPN report had Chris Paul heading to the Raptors in a three-team deal involving the Los Angeles Clippers, Brooklyn Nets and Toronto. The Nets landed Ochai Agbaji, a 2032 Raptors second-round pick and cash.

The Raptors reportedly will not require Clippers guard Paul to report to the team and might deal him away.

Another reported deal sent Philadelphia 76ers guard Jared McCain to the Oklahoma City Thunder for a 2026 first-round draft pick plus three second-round selections.

The Thunder were also involved in a deal that saw the Chicago Bulls trade Coby White and Mike Conley Jr to the Charlotte Hornets for Collin Sexton, Ousmane Dieng and three second-round choices, ESPN reported. The Hornets obtained Dieng and a second-round pick from OKC for Mason Plumlee.