Dallas Mavericks head coach Jason Kidd during an NBA game.
The Anthony Davis trade rumors didn’t cool off anytime soon. Theyexploded again after ESPN analyst Kendrick Perkins openly called for Dallas to move both Davis and Kyrie Irving while building around rookie Cooper Flagg.
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“I’m not just considering trading Anthony Davis, I’m trading the 33-year-old Kyrie Irving too. If you’re talking about rebuilding, then rebuild.” @KendrickPerkins weighs in on how the Mavericks should move forward with the future of the franchise 👀
During NBA Countdown on Jan. 14, Perkins said he wasn’t just “considering” trading Davis. He’d trade the 33-year-old Irving, too, arguing Dallas needs to fully commit to a rebuild instead of waiting on a Davis-Kyrie sample size that may never arrive.
That take landed at the exact moment Davis’ hand injury has become a major story and search trend — and it comes just hours before Dallas hosts the Denver Nuggets in a game that will draw a national audience on ESPN.
Kendrick Perkins Piles On as Anthony Davis Hand Injury Dominates Searches
Davis is expected to miss about six weeks and won’t need surgery,per an Associated Press report shared by NBA.com.
Dallas’ problem is the same one Perkins is screaming about: the team keeps getting forced into “what are we even building?” questions because availability keeps wrecking any runway.
Davis has played 20 games this season, averaging 20.4 points, 11.1 rebounds and 2.8 assists (plus strong rim protection) before the injury.
And Irving? He’s still working back from the torn ACL that ended his 2024-25 season, when he averaged 24.7 points, 4.8 rebounds and 4.6 assists.
What It Means for Mavericks vs. Nuggets Tonight
Even with all the trade noise, Dallas still has to play games, and Mavericks vs. Nuggets is set up to trend fast with stars on the injury report for both sides.
Key game info (Nuggets at Mavericks):
Game time: 9:30 p.m. ET (8:30 CT / 7:30 MT / 6:30 PT)
Location: American Airlines Center (Dallas, Texas)
TV channel: ESPN (plus local listings in both markets)
How to stream: ESPN app (with TV login), plus live-TV streamers that carry ESPN (YouTube TV, Hulu + Live TV, Sling, Fubo)
Injury report snapshot: Davis is listed out, and Irving is also out. Denver has Nikola Jokic listed out as well.
Odds (as of mid-day): Dallas -1.5 with a 224.5 total was one widely posted number Wednesday morning (lines can move quickly).
The Pressure Point Dallas Can’t Escape
Perkins’ message was simple: if Dallas is serious about building around Flagg, stop pretending a Davis-Irving run is guaranteed — and sell while you can.
Dallas’ front office is also staring at the ugly reality Perkins pointed out: there may never be a true “sample size” of Davis and Irving together. Irving’s ACL rehab timeline pushes his return deep into next season, and Davis’ hand injury is already creating another gap in continuity. That’s why “Anthony Davis hand injury” and “Anthony Davis trade rumors” are traveling together in searches, fans are trying to figure out whether Dallas is chasing wins now or just preserving asset value.
And if the Mavericks stumble on national TV against Denver, the noise won’t stay contained to TV panels. The usual game-night searches — “Mavs vs Nuggets score,” “box score,” “highlights,” “Jokic status,” “starting lineup,” and “injury report update” — will quickly turn into “who’s getting traded next?” if the game gets away early.
Whether you agree or not, that’s exactly why this story is catching fire: Dallas is trying to survive the present and argue about the future at the same time, and the Nuggets game is about to pour gasoline on both conversations