Mavericks embarrass Wizards in the Anthony Davis trade as Dallas steals the show

After suffering ligament damage in his left hand on January 8, Anthony Davis has not returned to the court for his new team, the Washington Wizards, and it seems unlikely he'll return at all with only a few games remaining this season. Given contributions from Marvin Bagley III and Khris Middleton, the Dallas Mavericks have won a few solid contests with lead performances from their acquisitions in the Davis trade, whereas Washington hasn't won any games with Davis on the court yet.

As of right now, there's almost no doubt the Mavericks won the Davis trade, as the 33-year-old big man will likely finish this season with only 20 games played, which is by far the least amount of games he's played in what has already been an injury-riddled career. Given Davis' age and playstyle, it's hard to see him coming back and consistently being the same player he once was, while Dallas has found some intriguing veterans they can potentially re-sign this summer in Bagley III and Middleton.

Bagley III recently had a game where he went 11-14 from the field en route to 26 points and nine rebounds versus the Portland Trail Blazers on March 27, as the Mavericks don't win that game without his rim-running and floor-stretching ability. Bagley III has been a huge spark plug for Dallas since coming over in the trade, as he's the type of second or third-string big man the Mavericks should highly consider signing this summer if they can get him on a fair deal.

Bagley III and Middleton alone have won Dallas the Davis deal

Middleton has also had some turn-back-the-clock performances for the Mavericks, including a season-high 35 points off the bench versus the Memphis Grizzlies in a March 12 game that Dallas won. While the 34-year-old Middleton isn't the same dynamic 3-and-D wing he used to be, he's still a savvy veteran who can score in bunches when he gets it going, and is also someone the Mavericks reportedly want to re-sign this summer.

By no means should a 25-53 Mavericks team be lauded for their performance post-Davis trade, but there's no doubt Dallas has gotten some respectable contributions from two of the players who came back in that deal, and they may have even found some pieces to go forward with in future seasons. Meanwhile, Davis has just recently been cleared for light contact, with the hopes that he can help get the Wizards back on track next season in the lineup alongside Trae Young.

Dallas is poised to win the trade in the long-term as well

The Wizards may have the foundation of an intriguing core if some of their young players start to hit, if Davis and Young can stay healthy next season, but there's no doubt the Mavericks have a brighter future on paper at this point. Young's career has been limited because of his defensive liabilities, as the Wizards will be asking a lot out of a notoriously injured Davis and young big man Alex Sarr to cover up for defensive mishaps at the point of attack next season.

Perhaps next season could somehow swing differently, but for now, Bagley III and Middleton alone have already won the Mavericks this trade, and that's not even mentioning the 2026 late first-round pick Dallas acquired from the Wizards in this deal. If Dallas simply re-signs one of Bagley III or Middleton this summer, then they will probably be the winners of the trade in the long-term as well, as Davis' injury history simply can't be trusted at this juncture in his career.