Surprise East Contender Showing Trade Interest in Mavericks' Anthony Davis

The NBA trade deadline is now just two days away, and blockbusters are starting to fly. The Utah Jazz just pulled off a big deal with the Memphis Grizzlies for Jaren Jackson Jr, but the Dallas Mavericks are still on eof the big teams to watch. They have a lot of veteran talent that is on the books for a few years, and as they look to build the team around Cooper Flagg,

The biggest name who could be on the move is Anthony Davis, who has played just 29 games since the infamous trade last year for Luka Doncic. He's hurt once again, dealing with ligament damage in his left hand, which is supposed to keep him out until the end of February, at least.

Most of the trade chatter around Anthony Davis has revolved around the Atlanta Hawks and Toronto Raptors. However, Brian Windhorst of ESPN has reported that the Cleveland Cavaliers have called the Mavs about a potential Anthony Davis trade. They also called the Milwaukee Bucks about Giannis Antetokounmpo.

"The Cavs have talked to the Bucks about Giannis. The Cavs have talked to the Mavs about Anthony Davis," - @WindhorstESPN on Cavs trade talks. https://t.co/Z0a97piJcq pic.twitter.com/gz5DaZJrPH
— ESPN Cleveland (@ESPNCleveland) February 3, 2026

An issue about trading with the Cavaliers is that in order to "match" salaries, they need to get below the second tax apron. As of now, they're about $13 million over the second apron, even after the recent trade of sending out De'Andre Hunter for Keon Ellis and Dennis Schroder.

There have also been a fair number of rumors revolving around the Cavs trading Darius Garland to the Clippers for James Harden. To trade for someone of Davis' caliber, they would almost assuredly have to make it a 4 or 5-team deal.

Dec 23, 2025; Dallas, Texas, USA; Dallas Mavericks forward Anthony Davis (3) looks down after being called for a foul against the Denver Nuggets during the first quarter at the American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images | Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

What a Mavericks-Cavaliers Trade for Anthony Davis Could Look Like

Trying to build a trade around five teams gets this complicated quickly, so let's focus on the Mavs and Cavs side of things. Any deal between the clubs would involve Jarrett Allen being sent to Dallas, and then other salaries going to teams like the Brooklyn Nets or Charlotte Hornets. They could make things easier by sending out Evan Mobley instead of Jarrett Allen, which would make Anthony Davis happy and allow him to play power forward, but that feels... ambitious.

However, it doesn't feel doable any other way. Even expanding the deal out to six teams doesn't make things any easier. Trying to she $13 million of salary from the Cavaliers without completely blowing the team up, while also finding teams who can take that salary, is very, very difficult.

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