Anthony Davis lowered his head and eased out to the American Airlines court for his warmup two hours before tipoff, his face stern, his eyes steady for his debut with the Dallas Mavericks.
Mavericks assistant coach Jared Dudley threw a pass to Davis, the two of them familiar with each other from their time as teammates on a Lakers team that won the NBA championship in 2020.
Davis was the second-to-last player from the Mavericks to take the court, the fans applauding him as he started for his new team.
Davis had been a part of a blockbuster trade that rocked the NBA landscape on Feb. 1 and left Mavericks fans highly upset because their beloved Luka Doncic was sent to the Lakers. The Lakers also sent Max Christie to the Mavericks, and the young guard was a valuable contributor in his first two games for them.
Davis, however, had been hurt when the Lakers traded him, so he didn’t take the court until Saturday against Houston. When he did, he looked dominant, with 26 points, 16 rebounds, seven assists and three blocked shots in less than three quarters.
But the good vibes dissipated when Davis exited with 2:11 left in the third and headed to the locker room because of what they called a lower-body injury. Davis had departed from his previous game, Jan. 28 in Philadelphia, after playing 10 minutes because of an abdominal strain.
When the game started, Davis made his presence felt immediately, first with a pass to Daniel Gafford for a dunk before blocking a shot by Rockets All-Star center Alperen Sengun and then throwing down a two-handed dunk after rebounding his own miss.
A timeout ensued and Davis turned to the crowd and yelled, “I’m here!”
He was given a standing ovation from Dallas fans who never wanted Doncic to leave, one of many ovations Davis received during Dallas’ 116-105 win over the Rockets.
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Late in the second quarter, Kyrie Irving threw a lob pass that Davis emphatically dunked, hanging on the rim for emphasis. The play gave the Mavericks a 20-point lead and forced the Rockets to call a timeout.
Davis and Irving found each other and produced a handshake, smiling, the fans on their feet roaring again. It was a reminder of the same plays Davis made during 5½ seasons with the Lakers — the handshakes with LeBron James, the dunks, the crowd inside Crypto.com Arena appreciating his talents.
Now, those gifts Davis possesses are in Dallas with the Mavericks. Davis made 10 of 18 shots, including both of his three-pointers, in 31 minutes.
Outside the arena, there was a strong police presence along with their dogs. They were here because of planned protests by Mavericks fans who expressed extreme displeasure with Doncic being traded.
Dallas coach Jason Kidd, who was a Lakers assistant when Davis helped them to the 2020 title, said he understood “the fans have a right to express” themselves.
“They pay their money for a game,” Kidd said. “They come to express how they felt and we understand the sadness or the hurt or confusion on the Luka trade. But we, as an employee of the Mavs, have no choice but to push forward with what we have.”
Christie was solid again, scoring 23 points, his third straight double-digit outing. His three-pointer with 1:38 left and two free throws with 51.1 seconds left were pivotal plays to help Dallas pull out the win.
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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
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