DALLAS — Anthony Davis lowered his head and eased out to the American Airways court docket for his warmup two hours earlier than tipoff, his face stern, his eyes regular for his debut with the Dallas Mavericks in opposition to the Houston Rockets.
Mavericks assistant coach Jared Dudley threw a go to Davis, the 2 of them conversant in one another from their time as teammates on a Lakers workforce that gained the NBA championship in 2020.
Davis was the second-to-last participant from the Mavericks to take the court docket, the followers applauding him as he began for his new workforce.
Davis had been part of a blockbuster commerce that rocked the NBA panorama on Feb. 1 and left Mavericks followers extremely upset as a result of their beloved Luka Doncic was despatched to the Lakers. The Lakers additionally despatched Max Christie to the Mavericks, and the younger guard was a invaluable contributor in his first two video games for them.
Davis, nonetheless, had been harm when the Lakers traded him, so he didn’t take the court docket till Saturday in opposition to Houston. When he did, he appeared dominant, with 26 factors, 16 rebounds, seven assists and three blocked pictures in lower than three quarters of a 116-105 win.
A fan holds up an indication welcoming new Mavericks ahead Anthony Davis and guard Max Christie on Saturday.
(LM Otero / Related Press)
“Obviously all day I was trying to figure out what reaction I was going to have,” Davis mentioned. “But obviously it was welcoming and I think that just kind of helped with my energy, with the crowd reacting the way they did. Obviously a big-time win and just got to try to keep it going.”
However the good vibes dissipated when Davis exited with 2:11 left within the third quarter and headed to the locker room due to what they known as a lower-body harm. Davis had departed from his earlier recreation, Jan. 28 in Philadelphia, after enjoying 10 minutes due to an belly pressure.
“I guess all right,” Dallas coach Jason Kidd mentioned after the sport about Davis, who was in an ice tub on the time. “We’ll see how he feels tomorrow.”
Davis mentioned the harm is in his groin space and quad space.
“It’s like right in the middle,” Davis mentioned.
When the sport began, Davis made his presence felt instantly, first with a go to Daniel Gafford for a dunk earlier than blocking a shot by Rockets All-Star middle Alperen Sengun after which throwing down a two-handed dunk after rebounding his personal miss.
A timeout ensued and Davis turned to the gang and yelled, “I’m here!”
“I was playing on a lot of emotions,” Davis mentioned. “I know this city has a lot of emotions right now. Just trying to do my job and change that emotion for good. … Dallas fans know what they got in a player like me. So, a little friendly reminder of who Anthony Davis is.”
He was given a standing ovation from Dallas followers who by no means needed Doncic to go away, considered one of many ovations Davis obtained throughout Dallas’ win over the Rockets.
Mavericks ahead Anthony Davis hangs on the rim after dunking over Rockets ahead Tari Eason and middle Alperen Sengun.
(LM Otero / Related Press)
Late within the second quarter, Kyrie Irving threw a lob go that Davis emphatically dunked, hanging on the rim for emphasis. The play gave the Mavericks a 20-point lead and compelled the Rockets to name a timeout.
Davis and Irving discovered one another and produced a handshake, smiling, the followers on their ft roaring once more. It was a reminder of the identical performs Davis made throughout 5½ seasons with the Lakers.
Now, these performs will come from Davis in Dallas. Davis made 10 of 18 pictures, together with each of his three-pointers, in 31 minutes.
“It’s like a divorce, right — from both sides. So, it takes time. Not saying it’s going to go away in one day. But we keep stacking days as a unit, continue to get better one day at a time and get wins and just let it take over from there.”
Exterior the world, there was a robust police presence due to deliberate protests by followers who expressed excessive displeasure with Doncic being traded.
Kidd, who was a Lakers assistant when Davis helped them to the 2020 title, mentioned he understood “the fans have a right to express” themselves.
“They pay their money for a game,” Kidd mentioned. “They come to express how they felt and we understand the sadness or the hurt or confusion on the Luka trade. But we, as an employee of the Mavs, have no choice but to push forward with what we have.”
Christie was strong once more, scoring 23 factors, his third straight double-digit outing. His three-pointer with 1:38 left and two free throws with 51.1 seconds left have been pivotal performs to assist Dallas pull out the win.
“It’s not surprising for me,” Christie mentioned of Davis’ efficiency. “ I’ve been with (Davis) for 2 ½, three years now. So, you guys can expect that from him every single night. He’s just such a great basketball player for any team that he’s on.
“Tonight, what he put up in the first half basically alone is what a lot of guys do for a full game. So, he’s just a very special player and looking forward to having him do that for us.”
