Anthony Davis' brutal injury forces Mavericks into a Kyrie Irving dilemma

News struck the Dallas Mavericks fanbase hard on Friday evening when it was announced that superstar Anthony Davis would likely miss the next few months due to ligament damage in his left hand. This not only shuts down any trade conversations they had centered around Davis, but the Mavericks have one more clear roster move to make to avoid a major catastrophe: shut down Kyrie Irving for the remainder of the season.

There's no route the Mavericks have to go besides focusing on the next season with an even better version of Cooper Flagg. With this in mind, the team must maximize the value of any veteran role players on the trade market and avoid any major injuries to star players, such as Irving.

Not only should Davis' injury be a clear message to keep Irving on the sidelines for the remainder of the season, but with a healthy Irving, the Mavericks may be forced to attempt to win games. Having Irving return early from his torn ACL to play in meaningless games would not only spell bad news for the former All-Star, but it would also divert the Mavericks away from focusing on what really matters, and that's pairing a second young star alongside Flagg in the 2026 draft.

Mavericks shouldn't even hesitate to shut down Kyrie Irving for the year

Sitting at a 14-24 record and a 12 seed in the Western Conference, the Mavericks' hopes and odds of competing in a packed West were already slimmed down after a slow start to the regular season. Even with a healthy Irving and Davis, the Mavericks' odds of bouncing back and making a meaningful run in the playoffs were little to none, considering their competition and the 10-game hole they were already in.

Now, adding the fact that Davis could be done for the remainder of the season, the Mavericks shouldn't have a choice but to deactivate Irving for the remainder of the season and focus on getting healthy in the summer.

Assuming the Mavericks are fully prepared to shut down or trade any player who they feel they can get positive value from, the team may go through a rough regular-season stretch, but it will be in the hopes of a better draft pick. Pairing Flagg alongside a second young co-star with a top pick in the draft would be a dream come true and should be an outcome that Irving is ready to accept, even if he is prepared to return.

The Mavericks should be fully focused on the future of this team, and without a clear draft outlook after this summer, the Mavericks need to do everything possible to maximize the value of this year's first-round pick. It's unclear if the team would be willing to trade any of their players in the hopes of acquiring a second pick in this year's draft, but capitalizing on a loaded draft class should be at the top of the priority list following Davis' injury.

Dallas still has a little less than a month before the trade deadline, so if stockpiling on draft picks for this summer is something the Mavericks want to do, they'd better be active callers this deadline.