The Washington Wizards made a blockbuster trade on Wednesday, sending a hefty package of players and draft picks to the Dallas Mavericks for a haul headlined by ten-time All-Star forward Anthony Davis.
The Wizards also acquired guards D’Angelo Russell, Dante Exum and Jaden Hardy in the trade, according to multiple reports.
In exchange, Dallas received guard AJ Johnson, forward Khris Middleton, guard Malaki Branham, forward Marvin Bagley III, two first-round picks and three second-rounders.
The Wizards retained their most valuable draft picks in the deal. The Mavericks added a first-rounder for this year’s draft that originally belonged to the defending champion Oklahoma City Thunder and a protected 2030 pick that initially came from the Golden State Warriors.
The blockbuster trade is another aggressive move for the ever-rebuilding Wizards, who also added four-time All-Star guard Trae Young through a deal with the Atlanta Hawks last month.
Wizards general manager Will Dawkins has preached patience since he arrived in the District ahead of the 2023-24 campaign. He managed expectations, noting that the franchise needed to blow up its underperforming roster before it could begin moving toward contention.
“We’re still on the road to rebuilding the team. We wanted to emphasize a few things: the importance of remaining flexible throughout the rebuild, the importance of thinking in layers and stacking up and being flexible, being opportunistic,” Dawkins said last month. “Doing that while finding players that fit toward our long-term vision, which is sustained success.”
The team has slowly traded away aging players like Kyle Kuzma, Bradley Beal, Russell Westbrook, Jordan Poole and C.J. McCollum in exchange for draft capital.
He said before this season that the team had finally finished that phase of the rebuild. They’d moved on to laying the foundation with young players like center Alex Sarr, wing Bilal Coulibaly, forward Kyshawn George and rookie guard Tre Johnson.
The addition of All-Stars Davis and Young indicates a team that is ready to play competitive games in the near future.
Analysts from around the league praised Dawkins’ deal-making ability on Wednesday.
“The Wizards turned Bradley Beal and Kyle Kuzma trades into Trae Young, Anthony Davis and five pick swaps,” Grant Paulsen from 106.7 “The Fan,” wrote on X. “This front office has put on a clinic.”
“Trae Young, Anthony Davis. Solid Young core. Maybe another top-eight pick on the way,” Sports Illustrated’s Chris Mannix wrote on X. “[Wizards President] Michael Winger and Will Dawkins have positioned the Wizards to be a threat in the East next season.”
But, Davis — like Young — is injured. The 32-year-old big man has been sidelined for a month with a hand injury. He’s expected to miss another three weeks before being reevaluated.
In 20 games this season, Davis has averaged 20.4 points with 11 rebounds and 1.7 blocks. The No. 1 overall pick in the 2012 draft is widely considered one of the league’s top defenders when healthy. No player has blocked more shots than Davis since he entered the league in 2012.
A five-time All-Defense selection, Davis played just nine games for Dallas last season after a shocking midseason trade sent him from the Los Angeles Lakers in exchange for superstar Luka Doncic. This season, Davis missed 18 of the Mavericks’ first 38 games with groin and calf issues.
He never played more than five games in a row in Dallas.
Davis joins a 13-36 Wizards team that is vying for a high draft pick this year. Washington retained its own 2026 selection — currently projected to land in the Top Five — in Wednesday’s trade.
The Kentucky product carries a $58.5 million cap hit next season before qualifying for a $62.8 million player option for the 2027-28 campaign.
The NBA trade deadline is set for 3 p.m. on Thursday. With stars like James Harden already traded — the Los Angeles Clippers dealt the former MVP to the Cleveland Cavaliers — all eyes turn to Giannis Antetokounmpo.
The Milwaukee Bucks are reportedly entertaining trade offers for the two-time MVP. NBA insiders have tied Antetokounmpo to the Miami Heat, Golden State Warriors and Minnesota Timberwolves as trade rumors intensified over the last month.
• Liam Griffin can be reached at lgriffin@washingtontimes.com.
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