Mark Cuban Had Two-Word Reaction to Mavericks Trading Away Anthony Davis

Cuban clearly took one side in the wake of the blockbuster trade.

Mark Cuban shared his brief thoughts on seeing the Mavericks deal star Anthony Davis to the Wizards. | Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

One year ago, Mark Cuban might have had a very pointed two-word outburst for ex-Mavericks GM Nico Harrison after finding out Luka Dončić was getting traded to the Lakers in the middle of the night.

This time around, Cuban offered two likely different words in response to Dallas sending Anthony Davis to the Wizards before Thursday’s deadline: “Love it,” Cuban said, via Fox 4’s Mike Doocy.

“While it's tough to lose great players, this opens the door for us to have picks and flexibility to build around Coop,” continued Cuban.

It wasn’t lost on any NBA fans that the Mavericks screwed up big-time this past year, with their ground-shaking Dončić deal from last February looking much worse after they ended up shipping away the player who they traded in exchange for the Slovenian star.

As Davis gets a fresh start in Washington, the Mavericks are staring at quite the paltry return for their infamous Dončić trade, one that will now indubitably go down as the worst in league history. Dallas traded one of the NBA’s premier talents in exchange for, essentially: Max Christie, Khris Middleton, AJ Johnson, Malaki Branham, Marvin Bagler III, two late first-rounders, a protected first-round pick and three second-round picks.

Still, it may not be wholly surprising that Cuban, for one, reportedly loved the Davis trade as it served as a much-needed bookend to a notorious chapter in the Mavericks franchise. More importantly, as Cuban notes in his repost of ESPN analyst Bobby Marks’s tweet, it gives Dallas the financial flexibility to build around their new superstar, reigning No. 1 pick Cooper Flagg (who the Mavericks got in part due to dealing Dončić and in part due to sheer luck).

“The Mavericks now have the resources, starting with a likely lottery pick (and a late first) and financial/roster resources to build their roster around Cooper Flagg,” Marks wrote on X (formerly Twitter). “Dallas has $150M in guaranteed money next year, well below the tax and apron.”

The Mavericks now have the resources, starting with a likely lottery pick (and a late first) and financial/roster resources to build their roster around Cooper Flagg.

Dallas has $150M in guaranteed money next year, well below the tax and apron.

For this season, Dallas drops…

— Bobby Marks (@BobbyMarks42) February 4, 2026

Consider Cuban extremely pleased with how this year’s trade deadline played out for the Mavs, and for good reason. Less burdened by Harrison’s franchise-altering decisions of the past, Dallas can now turn over a new leaf and kickstart a more hopeful era with Flagg taking center stage in the future.

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