Anthony Davis shares feelings on shocking trade, new home in Dallas

In the midst of the baffling Luka Doncic-Anthony Davis trade between the Mavericks and Lakers, many pundits, fans, and analysts reacted strongly to all aspects of the swap. Most, however, focused on Doncic's feelings about being spurned by an organization for which he gave his entire career up to that point. What was lost in the mix were Davis' thoughts on the trade, about which he spoke in an interview with Mark Spears of ESPN.

"I'm great. I don't feel it, but a lot of people have been coming to me and telling me they haven't seen me smile like this in a long time," admitted Davis, who won an NBA Championship with his former team, the Los Angeles Lakers, in 2020. Despite being shipped off with no warning, it appears the new face of Dallas' premier basketball operation has a positive outlook on the business that is basketball.

"Obviously, the first maybe 48 hours, it was just a shock because I wasn't expecting it. Nobody was expecting it...But I know from my side, my team and my family and everybody who works with me, I wasn't expecting it. Even when I was getting some of the calls [about the trade], I thought guys were playing. But it ended up being true and that first initial [reaction] was more a shock just seeing [our] position. We're in fifth in the West, we were rolling, and I wasn't playing [due to injury]. So, I just tried to feel everybody out and just kind of let it happen organically. And now we got a super-tight bond, man with all the guys. So, I'm happy, man. Happy I get to play."

Despite being out for much of his stint with Dallas due to an adductor strain, Davis is an all-time great big man in the league and a player who has been a staple of American basketball for the last decade and a half. This includes his sensational one-and-done campaign at Kentucky, but also his carrying of the New Orleans Pelicans early in his career during a time in which he was the only attraction in the franchise.

Fair or not, Davis will always be compared to Luka Doncic, something to which he will never live up due to age and chronic injury issues. His best years are behind him, but that will not stop Davis from playing to the best of his ability when he is on the floor.

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