Davis, who is nursing his abdominal strain, was announced unavailable for the game against the Philadelphia 76ers on Tuesday, keeping his debut on hold.
The NBA world was taken aback when reports of Luka Doncic being traded to the LA Lakers in exchange for Anthony Davis started circulating all over the internet. Soon, it was confirmed that Davis is no longer a Laker!
The Lakers acquired Doncic, in what is being called as the biggest trade, in exchange for the veteran Anthony Davis and a first-round draft pick in a three-team trade. They also sent guard Jalen Hood-Schifino to the Utah Jazz.
Davis, who is nursing his abdominal strain, was announced unavailable for the game against the Philadelphia 76ers on Tuesday, keeping his debut on hold. The game saw Davis’ new side register a close 118-116 loss against their rivals, marking their third straight defeat.
While the former Laker veteran didn’t play his maiden game for the Mavericks on Feb.4, he had already joined the side on their road trip, and was on the bench. However, another former Laker Max Christie, who also joined Davis in the Mavericks, was in action against the 76ers, and finished the night with 15 points, nine rebounds and three assists.
Davis talked to the media for the first time after moving to Dallas, revealing that the deal left him as shocked as anyone else, and that he was not anticipating such a move.
The 31-year-old said, “I was shocked. I didn’t know. I was actually at home, about to watch a movie with my wife and got the phone call. I had no idea.”
He also revealed that “he is now over it and ready to play with Dallas.”
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As Anthony moved to the Mavericks, he decided to waive his $6M trade bonus. Notably, Davis had $6 m bonus written in his contract, which entitles him of the money in case of a trade.
But, Davis decided to waive the bonus in order to help the side put up a strong team after losing a player like Luka. Speaking about his decision, he told ESPN, “Trying to help the team. Obviously, you always want to get better, and losing a monumental piece like Luka … it’s a lot, right?”
“So I’m just trying to do my part and help Nico and the organization on how we can continuously get better. That’s just always the right thing to do.”
The 11th-seeded (Western Conference) Dallas Mavericks (26-25) will be up against the Celtics on Thursday, Feb. 6, and if everything goes well, we might see the 10-time NBA All-Star donning his new jersey.