Mavericks' season will hinge on terrifying Anthony Davis reality

One thing is for certain: many Dallas Mavericks fans didn't expect Anthony Davis to be on the roster at the start of the 2024-25 NBA season. As shocking as the Luka Doncic trade was at the time and still is, the reality of Dallas' situation now is that Davis is the man running the show and dictating the ceiling of the Mavericks.

Last season was a good testament to just how dominant Davis can be as a member of the Mavericks, but early injuries plagued what could have been a special back half of the regular season. Not to mention, the Mavericks also lost Kyrie Irving to a season-ending ACL tear that has proven to be a costly what-if scenario for Dallas and their fans, as Davis and Irving have only played 25 minutes on an NBA floor together.

While Davis has had a laundry list of injuries throughout his storied career, one narrative has always stuck around the teams that he has played on. If Davis can maintain health and play at least 75 percent of the regular season, he has not only proven to have amazing years when that happens, but the team he is playing for manages to have great regular seasons as well.

Mavs can't afford for Davis to miss more than 25 percent of season

As hard as it may be for some fans to hear, the Mavericks' season truly does hinge on the health and availability of Davis throughout the regular season. In some of Davis' most dominant seasons, his teams not only reached the playoffs, but in the case of the 2020 bubble, the Los Angeles Lakers won the NBA championship in large part due to Davis' effort.

Now, as the Mavericks shift their focus to the future, it's not only important that the Mavericks maintain health as a team, but that Davis plays at least 75 percent of the regular season. While that might sound like a very exact amount of games, throughout his career, if Davis is playing 65 of the 82 games, he has been able to have some of the most dominant regular seasons for a big man in NBA history.

In 2024, Davis had one of his healthiest seasons in his career, and while the Lakers would eventually lose to the Denver Nuggets in the first round of the playoffs, Davis graced a First Team All-Defensive season on top of being a 2nd Team All-NBA player that same season. Assuming Davis can bring that same production to next year's Dallas squad, the Mavericks could be in for a very special season.

In the case of the Mavericks, they not only lack star power outside of Davis due to Irving's ACL injury, but a lot of their offensive production will rely upon Davis and a rookie Cooper Flagg. Assuming Flagg plays better than expected, then that has to put more pressure on Davis to be the player he has been throughout his professional career.

This is not only a season that Davis needs to maintain health if the Mavericks want to make it back to the playoffs, but this coming season has to be one of the most important years in Davis' career to prove the doubters wrong. Since getting traded to Dallas, Davis has been known for his streaky availability, and while his career has been plagued by injuries, it's time for the big man to put on a show and prove that he can lead a franchise by himself.

As a Maverick, Davis not only has the perfect opportunity to prove many doubters wrong, but he is in the perfect situation to have a career year. For a long time, Davis has always considered himself a power forward, and in Dallas, he will have the best opportunity to play power forward alongside two dominant centers in Dereck Lively II and Daniel Gafford.

Although it might sound like a recipe for disaster, a lot of the Mavericks' season will hinge on how healthy Davis can be throughout a long regular season.