Amid all the anticipation for Cooper Flagg’s rookie campaign, the Dallas Mavericks could be without a key contributor when they open the 2025-26 regular season.
Appearing on the DLLS Mavs podcast, NBA insider Marc Stein reported Anthony Davis is “not fully back on the court yet” as he recovers from offseason eye surgery.
Davis had surgery in July to repair a detached retina, but the belief from the Mavs was he would be ready for the start of training camp. The injury occurred at some point last season and he was able to play through it.
The club will open training camp on Sept. 29, with their first preseason game scheduled for Oct. 6 against the Oklahoma City Thunder.
The Mavericks have a lot of injury concerns with training camp just over two weeks away. It’s already known that Kyrie Irving won’t be ready until at least January after suffering a torn ACL during a game against the Sacramento Kings on March 3.
Dereck Lively II had surgery for bone spurs in his right foot in July, but he is expected to be ready for the start of training camp. He only played 36 games last season due to foot issues.
Despite all of the turmoil around the Mavericks last season in the aftermath of the Luka Dončić trade, things turned in their favor when they won the No. 1 pick in the lottery and used it to select Flagg.
Flagg will be the centerpiece of everything the Mavs do, but their ceiling for the 2025-26 season will depend on the health of players like Davis and Irving.
Davis only played in nine out of a possible 33 games with Dallas after being acquired from the Los Angeles Lakers in the Dončić trade. He averaged 20.0 points, 10.1 rebounds and 4.4 assists per contest in those nine games.
The Mavericks will tipoff the 2025-26 regular season at home against the San Antonio Spurs on Oct. 22.