Mark Cuban immediately shuts down Mavericks' season-defining trade rumor
Dallas Mavericks minority owner and adviser to Patrick Dumont, Mark Cuban, recently said that Dallas won't trade Anthony Davis, according to a recent report by Joe Vardon of The Athletic. Davis is currently out of the lineup with a left calf strain, and according to Cuban, they want to keep him around moving forward.
"We won't," Cuban said. "We want to try to win."
Cuban shut down these rumors of Davis being moved within days of them originally coming out, but this decision will ultimately come down to Patrick Dumont and the direction that he wants to take moving forward.
Mark Cuban silences Anthony Davis trade talk — for now
If Cuban's statement about trying to win this year aligns with Dumont's mindset, then keeping Davis will be their best way to do that. Regardless of the injuries that have plagued his time in Dallas, he is still one of the top bigs in the NBA when healthy. He and Kyrie Irving could form a deadly duo together once Irving is ready to return from his ACL tear, but will Davis and Irving being healthy for the final stretch of the season be enough to push the Mavericks into the playoffs?
Probably not.
Heading into tonight's game against the New York Knicks, the Mavericks are 4-11 on the season, which puts them at 13th in the Western Conference. Even when Davis was healthy to begin the year, he didn't look great, and it didn't lead to Dallas winning games. The Mavs were 1-3 in the four full games that Davis played in, including a 30-point loss to the San Antonio Spurs and a home defeat to the 1-12 Washington Wizards.
The Mavericks can't expect Davis to lead the Mavericks on a surge back into the playoff race without Irving by his side, and the last thing that they need to do is to put pressure on either player to return prematurely from injury. Davis learned this the hard way last season when he strained his adductor in his first game as a Maverick, and if he were to get hurt this season, Dallas would be doomed.
Another serious injury to Davis would turn this season into even more of a nightmare than it already is, and on top of that, it would be much tougher to trade him.
Teams want to see Davis get healthy before trading for him (if Dallas does indeed shop him), and they'd likely be stuck with him for the remainder of the season. Davis is owed $175 million over the next three seasons, and no team will want to pay him this if he gets hurt again.
While Cuban has the right to his opinion, and he could be telling the truth about the team wanting to win as many games as possible right now by keeping Davis, trading him to build around Cooper Flagg seems to be the best route forward.
Dallas' 2026 first-round pick is their only first-round pick of their own that they own until 2031, and they can't afford to mess this up. The Mavericks need to add the best possible young player to grow alongside Flagg, and the best way to strengthen their odds of doing so would be to tank.
Time will tell if the Davis rumors turn into anything, but Cuban seems to be standing firm on his stance that Davis is going to remain in Dallas for the time being.
Patriots Face TreVeyon Henderson Question Amid Rhamondre Stevenson News
For Patriots rookie running back TreVeyon Henderson, the last four weeks have been something of a revelation. After an electric showing in the summer throughout training camp, he spent much of the first third of the season firmly planted behind starter Rhamondre Stevenson. The Patriots offense, of course, is built to support and protect quarterback Drake Maye, and Henderson’s pass-blocking just was not up to snuff.
So his opportunities were limited. In his first seven NFL games, Henderson had 43 rushing attempts for 153 yards, and another 99 yards on 16 catches.
But as injuries have taken their toll on the Patriots’ running back room, with Antonio Gibson lost to an ACL tear in Week 4 and Stevenson suffering a toe injury that kept him out for the past three weeks, Henderson has had his opportunity, and seized it.
In his last four games, Henderson has 57 carries and 339 yards, notching four touchdowns. He also has 10 catches for 66 yards, and another touchdown. The electric back fans saw all summer made his NFL arrival.
Patriots Will Have Rhamondre Stevenson, TreVeyon Henderson Choice
Of course, the Patriots were always going to get Stevenson back, and be left with a dilemma–a positive one, no doubt, but a dilemma nonetheless. Should the Patriots return to Stevenson, a very good blocking back who does a solid job picking up yardage between the tackles? Or go with Henderson, who struggles to grind out yards inside but who has home-run ability every time he touches the ball?
Patriots coach Mike Vrabel was asked about that decision on Wednesday.
“I think we’re gonna have to have that conversation when it’s certain that we’re gonna have Rhamondre. So, work through practice today and see where things go,” Vrabel said.
(Photo by Jordan Bank/Getty Images)Rhamondre Stevenson #38 of the New England Patriots
Patriots Have Gotten More From TreVeyon Henderson as a Blocker
Interestingly, though the production has picked up in the run game, at Pro Football Focus, the advanced numbers are not all that impressed with either Patriots running back. Henderson rates a grade of 59.8 according to the site, which is 52nd out of 59 running backs graded in the NFL. That’s mostly because Henderson has a terrible pass-block grade of 22.8.
Stevenson, who has three fumbles on his record this year, has a grade of 58.0, which is 54th out of 59 running backs. He is a significantly better pass-blocker, but again, Henderson is ranked fifth-worst in the NFL at it.
Also worth noting, though: Henderson’s pass-blocking grades have improved as the season has gone on. In three of his last five games, his pass-blocking grade has been 73.0 or higher, which would rate very well around the league. But his early-season struggles are holding his overall grade down.
Rhamondre Stevenson a Full Go at Practice
Vrabel said the Patriots’ intention is to continue using both Henderson and Stevenson, who returned to full participation at practice this week. The balance between the two going forward will be worth watching.
“TreVeyon’s helped us, Rhamondre’s helped us, Terrell (Jennings) has helped us. Disappointed that D’Ernest (Johnson) couldn’t have a couple more carries,” Vrabel said.
“We’ll try to have them all help us. But it’s been good to see TreVeyon continue to run hall and take care of the football and everything else.”
