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Anthony Davis exited his Dallas Mavericks debut on Saturday against the Houston Rockets with a non-contact injury in the third quarter and is doubtful to return, the team announced.
The Mavericks added that Davis is dealing with a lower-body injury.
Davis appeared to suffer the injury while defending the paint as Alperen Sengun drove to the basket:
The 31-year-old averaged 25.7 points, 11.9 rebounds, 2.1 blocks and 1.3 steals per game in 42 contests for the Los Angeles Lakers this season before L.A. traded him on Feb. 1 in a blockbuster deal that landed the team five-time All-NBA First Teamer Luka Dončić.
At the time, Davis was sidelined with an abdominal strain suffered against the Philadelphia 76ers on Jan. 28. However, NBA insider Marc Stein reported that Davis was expected to make his Mavs debut on Saturday, Feb. 8 against the Houston Rockets.
Davis has been one of the NBA’s most dominant big men on both ends for a decade. His resume includes nine All-Star honors, five All-NBA teams and five spots on All-NBA Defensive Teams. Unsurprisingly, Davis easily found a spot on the NBA’s 75th Anniversary Team.
AD won a national championship for Kentucky in his lone season in Lexington (2011-12) before heading to the NBA. He played seven seasons for the New Orleans Pelicans before requesting a trade that landed him with the Lakers.
Davis won an immediate championship with the team in 2020 and ultimately fared well in town before his time came to an abrupt end.
Now he’s in Dallas, where he’s the co-star of the show with point guard Kyrie Irving.
The Dallas frontcourt has been hit hard with injuries. Second-year pro Dereck Lively II is out with a right ankle stress fracture, and Dwight Powell is out with a right hip strain.
Davis, of course, is an invaluable member of this team now, especially with its previous top scorer and superstar now a Laker. So the Mavs can’t really afford to lose him for any time as they hope to excel in this new era.
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