Anthony Davis' controversial trade 'preference' is bound to destroy the Mavericks

The Dallas Mavericks could be screwed for their future if they were to actually follow through on Anthony Davis' wish, which is to sign him to a long-term extension this upcoming summer rather than trade him.

Davis has been in trade rumors for weeks now, but rather than being moved to a team like the Atlanta Hawks, Davis hopes to stick things out in Dallas and remain a Maverick.

Nearly halfway through the season, fans have already seen all they needed to. Developing Cooper Flagg and building around him for the foreseeable future by trading Davis should be Dallas' plan. Signing Davis long-term is a fire you can't put out, and ESPN's Tim MacMahon explained why.

Why an Anthony Davis extension could wreck the Cooper Flagg era

MacMahon came out with an alarming update on the Davis news ahead of next month's trade deadline. He spoke on what the Mavs' front office could be looking to do with Davis soon, but also expressed immense concern about why it would be difficult to trade Davis now.

"AD's preference would be to stay in Dallas and to get that extension this summer," MacMahon said. "The Mavericks are trying to generate a good trade market for Anthony Davis. That is difficult because of the durability issues, and I think more so, the dollars."

Signing Davis long-term has its risks, and fans have known about those risks from the very beginning of his tenure. He's had countless injuries from just his time here alone, like when he got diagnosed with an adductor strain in his debut for the Mavericks.

Just for a moment, it looked like the angry Mavs fans had forgotten about the nightmare of trading Luka Doncic, but after Davis and the rest of the gang went down like bowling pins, no one could hold in their anger anymore.

The future is bright and clear.

Keeping Kyrie Irving is great for continuity and leadership for Flagg to one day take the torch entirely, but Davis simply cannot be trusted to stay on the court. Mavs fans have seen enough of Nico Harrison's philosophy because it's not working. The main piece from the Luka Doncic trade can't even stay on the court consistently. The Doncic trade never made sense in the first place, and now, it only seems like a ticking time bomb to get Davis out of Dallas.

Davis is eligible to sign a four-year, $275 million max extension on August 6 of this year, and he would like to remain in Dallas and sign this extension. If the Mavs actually follow through with Davis' wishes, it would be like a marriage they cannot get out of. Working to build Flagg around a player who's always injured isn't good for Flagg's growth, but it also doesn't help get the Mavs to their goals.

To add onto MacMahon's point, Rich Paul is going to push for Davis to get everything he wants. The Mavs shouldn't be the team to spend that much money, and instead trade some pieces for some draft security between 2026 and 2031. The Davis project hasn't been going the way fans feared, and it's not just all of a sudden going to get better when Davis is in his mid-30s.