Anthony Davis’ injury: A look at every setback since joining the Dallas Mavericks

Since being traded to the Dallas Mavericks in early 2025, in the controversial deal that sent Luka Doncic away, Anthony Davis has played just 14 games with the Mavericks in the past regular-season. The trade angered much of the Mavericks’ fan base as many believed Doncic was a star player to them, thus trading him seemed unfair. And along with that, people had started putting even more attention on Davis’ health conditions.

In recent seasons, people have been concerned with Davis and have been following him closely, especially because expectations remain high whenever he takes the court. However, with each new injury also brings focus on his long-term health, often overshadowing his impact when he does play.

Here is the list of all the injuries that Anthony Davis has suffered since joining the Dallas Mavericks:

Abdominal Injury: At the time of the trade, Anthony Davis was already dealing with an abdominal injury. Eager to play his first game with the Mavericks, Davis rushed back to the court and looked quite dominant in the first half of a February 8, 2025 game, which in fact the Mavericks ended up winning. However, he later suffered a muscle injury related to that abdominal injury. That injury forced Davis to miss the next six weeks, raising further concerns about whether he returned too quickly and how carefully the team needs to manage his recovery moving forward.


Adductor Strain: Anthony Davis suffered an adductor strain during the same February 8, 2025 game, an injury connected to his earlier abdominal issues. That particular injury sidelined him for nearly six weeks from playing games.


Eye Injury: Anthony Davis also underwent an offseason surgery to treat a detached retina. After the surgery, he was seen wearing protective goggles during plays. Davis said that he felt the injury happened during an April 2, 2025 game against the Atlanta Hawks, when teammate Daniel Gafford accidentally hit him in the face with an elbow. Davis left the game to get stitches and returned back to play. However, it wasn’t until the offseason that he realized the impact of that accidental hit was more than just a cut on his face.


Calf Injury: During the 2025–26 season, Anthony Davis missed several games due to a left calf strain and related lower-leg injury. He was listed on the injury report multiple times, and the team took a serious thought before allowing him to return to play. Overall in the 2025-26 NBA regular season, Davis averaged around 20.4 points (approx.), played 20 games in a total of 38 games for the Mavericks.


Groin Spasm: During the Dallas Mavericks’ Christmas Day game in 2025 against the Golden State Warriors, Anthony Davis felt pain in his right groin midway through the second quarter. He walked off the court toward the bench and then went straight to the locker room. Davis was seen holding his groin and didn’t return for the rest half of the game. Davis later missed many games because of this issue, as was reported by ESPN.


Leg Injury: During a match up against the Indiana Pacers in the 2025-2026 season, Anthony Davis left the game early, and went straight up to the locker room as he started feeling discomfort in his left lower leg. He left the court during the first quarter and did not come back for the rest of the game. Mavericks at first questioned his return but later ruled him out as the game ended. Before the game, Davis had been dealing with pain in both Achilles tendons, a condition that can cause pain in the lower leg, and can happen due to heavy work pressure.


Hand Ligament Injury: Anthony Davis recently hurt his left hand near the end of Thursday’s game against the Utah Jazz. The team later confirmed that the injury was related to ligament damage. The play happened in the final 3 minutes when Davis was hit by the Utah Jazz center Lauri Markkanen, just when he was about to score. Despite being hurt, Davis continued playing for a short time, but he was clearly seen to be uncomfortable and in a lot of pain. Davis headed straight to the locker room with just over two minutes left on the clock. He did not come back to finish the game.


The Dallas Mavericks team also said that moving forward, Anthony Davis is consulting more than one doctor to decide how to deal with the injuries.


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