LeBron James rumor shows Mavericks once had the perfect recruiting pitch to sign him

The Dallas Mavericks seem to be out of the picture when it comes to the LeBron James free-agency sweepstakes, but that wouldn't have been the case if they had held onto Anthony Davis at the 2026 trade deadline rather than trading him to the Washington Wizards. Davis and James spent five and a half seasons together on the Los Angeles Lakers before Davis was traded to the Mavs in 2025, and it sounds like James wants to reunite with Davis before he retires.

James wants his next team to trade for Irving or Davis

According to Yahoo Sports' Kevin O'Connor, "The popular theory around the league is that LeBron has been slow-playing his decision to see if any of his suitors could find a way to land Irving or Davis," O'Connor wrote. "If a team proved capable of acquiring one of his championship teammates, sources say, it might sway him in that direction."

James would clearly like to play with Davis once again, and according to this report, he wants to do the same thing with current Mavericks star point guard Kyrie Irving. O'Connor detailed how it seems unlikely that LeBron's next team would be able to trade for either one of LeBron's former teammates, as the Mavs don't want to move Irving and Washington seems to be in the same boat with Davis.

Dallas used to have the perfect recruiting pitch for LeBron James

But if Dallas hadn't traded Davis last season, they would've possessed the perfect recruiting pitch to sway King James to come to the Mavericks. A team wouldn't have to trade for Irving and Davis to convince James to sign with them. Dallas would have both of them under contract, and if James' top priority were to team up with these guys, the choice would've been easy.

LeBron won titles with both Kyrie and AD in separate seasons, and for the first time, he would've been able to compete for a championship alongside both players.

Dallas would've rostered Irving and Davis, two teammates who James actively wants to team up with, along with a budding young star in Cooper Flagg, two rim-rolling bigs in Dereck Lively II and Daniel Gafford, and one of the greatest shooters of all time, Klay Thompson, on the wing. It also must be remembered that Irving tried to recruit James to Dallas just a few summers ago, and he likely would've done the same thing this summer if he believed the Mavericks had a real shot to sign him.

Dallas would have had an extremely intriguing pitch to throw at Rich Paul and James, and they likely would have been among the frontrunners to sign James this summer.

They could offer him a chance to contend for a title, the opportunity to mentor Flagg, and the perfect place to spend the last few seasons of his career before he retires.

Paul listed Dallas as a realistic destination for James in a recent podcast episode, but if the Mavericks didn't trade Davis, they would've just been a potential option. They likely would've been among the top options with a long list of reasons that James would've had a hard time saying no to.

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