Anthony Davis is quietly pushing himself right off the Mavericks

Anthony Davis was a monster in his last game for the Dallas Mavericks, finishing with 26 points, 12 rebounds, and five blocks against the Houston Rockets, and these types of performances prove why some team will talk themselves into trading for him.

Davis has been at the center of trade rumors immediately after Nico Harrison was fired earlier this season, and him remaining healthy and playing at an all-star level while staying on the floor should bring more teams into the race to trade for him.

He is still one of the best defensive-minded big men in the NBA when fully healthy, and after proving that his groin injury from Christmas Day was nothing serious, he is ready to remind the league how great he can be. The trade rumors surrounding Davis have seemingly slowed down recently, but if he can continue to play like this, expect them to pick up significantly by the time that the February 5 trade deadline rolls around.

Davis is showing the NBA why someone should take a chance on him

He has made it clear that he prefers to remain in Dallas and sign an extension this summer, but if the Mavericks don't feel great about extending him, they need to trade him. Rich Paul and his camp will ensure Davis ends up somewhere that will want to give him a lucrative contract extension this offseason, and him playing as he did against Houston will help guarantee that.

Davis helped lead the Mavericks to a 110-104 win over the Rockets last weekend, and Dallas has now defeated Houston, the Detroit Pistons, and the Denver Nuggets in three of the last seven games that he's played in. His presence obviously leads to winning, and that is the most important thing when thinking about the teams that are interested in trading for him.

His shot-blocking, finishing through contact, and rebounding were on full display against the Rockets, and Dallas is clearly a much better team when he is on the floor. Despite all of the other injuries around him, the Mavericks have a 9-9 record when Davis plays compared to a 4-14 record when he is out of the lineup, and his presence alone has a massive effect on wins and losses.

Trading for Anthony Davis is not the type of move that a team will make for the future. He is obviously a win-now-type of player at 32 years old, and this is why getting him out of the Western Conference is the best idea for both sides.

The West is too loaded right now, and a team landing Davis could propel them from play-in pretenders to contenders.

The Atlanta Hawks seem to be the leading suitor for Davis right now, and they need some help badly. They are 4-13 over their last 17 games, and despite this, they are still the No. 10 seed in the East and are only four games back from the No. 5 seed.

The Eastern Conference is wide open, and a team trading for a player like Davis could shift the entire landscape of the conference. He is one of the most impactful defenders in the NBA when he's fully healthy, and the East doesn't have a surplus of star bigs like the West does.

Davis is a true game wrecker when he's on the floor, and if the elite performances continue to roll in, so will the trade interest. The Mavericks have been gauging his trade market for some time now, and his market is only poised to increase moving forward.