The cold hard Anthony Davis truth the NBA is already terrified to accept

Ever since Anthony Davis was traded by the Los Angeles Lakers to the Dallas Mavericks, fans have counted him out. Dallas should've undoubtedly gotten more of a return for Doncic from the Lakers, but fans have seemingly forgotten that Davis is one of the best bigs in the NBA, and he'll be on a mission to prove that to the rest of the league beginning on opening night on October 22 against the San Antonio Spurs.

The entire NBA is afraid to accept the cold hard truth that Davis is still one of the best players in the Western Conference, and Mavs fans truly have no idea how dominant he is about to be to begin next season. Davis is going to be must-watch television every time he steps onto the floor, and the rest of the league doesn't know what they're getting themselves into.

The Davis that Mavericks fans are about to watch next season will be completely different from the player who closed the season for Dallas last season, as he was injured for his entire tenure for the Mavs and was clearly not his real self.

Anthony Davis will be one of the best players in the West

Davis went down in his first game as a Maverick with an adductor strain, which sidelined him for about a month and a half, and even once he returned, he wasn't at his best. He looked a bit slower defensively than we've seen in the past, and although he had a couple of massive games, including a 40-point game against the Memphis Grizzlies in the Play-In Tournament, he still has another level to reach.

In 51 games in for Los Angeles and Dallas last season, Davis averaged 24.7 points, 11.6 rebounds, 3.5 assists, 1.2 steals, and 2.2 blocks per game while shooting 51.6 percent from the field. He started the season hot, even becoming one of the top MVP candidates thanks to his dominance on both ends of the floor. He ultimately cooled off and dealt with some injuries, but the Davis from October and November of last season displayed how dangerous he can be at his peak.

When Davis is locked in, he's the type of player who can put up a 30-point 10-rebound double-double with ease, while also making a massive defensive impact on the other end. With Davis set to play mostly power forward next season, the Mavs are going to have one of the scariest frontlines in the NBA with Davis, Daniel Gafford, Dereck Lively II, and Cooper Flagg.

No one will be able to score on Dallas down low, and Davis is going to be the glue that holds their defense together. If Davis makes the Mavs' defense elite for the first half of the season while also being the main do-it-all engine to keep the offense afloat while Kyrie Irving is out, he could find himself being one of the top MVP candidates in the league.

All eyes will be on the Mavericks thanks to the arrival of Flagg, and this will consequently cause everyone to be raving about Davis if he can stay healthy and take another step in his game. They'll need his mid-range jumper to fall at a high rate while also being a monster down low, and if both of those things happen, the Mavs are going to be in a great spot.

The team as a whole is already being significantly overlooked, and Davis is going to be in a prime position to shut all of the haters down. His performance in Dallas last season needs to be taken with a grain of salt, as his body clearly wasn't right and he barely played with Irving, and the 2025-26 season is going to be his make-or-break moment as a Maverick.

Mavs fans are looking for anything to be excited about after a disastrous 2024-25 season, and Davis can flip the narrative surrounding his name by helping Dallas be one of the top teams in the West and emerge as a contender before Irving comes back. Davis is truly the team's biggest X-factor heading into next season, and the rest of the league should be terrified at the player that he can be.