Anthony Davis opens up on his true motivation behind anticipated comeback from injury with the Mavs

The Dallas Mavericks have won 3 of their last 5 games. This shows clear improvement. However, they still have not escaped their negative streak. They have not won more than two games in a row. The team struggles to build consistency. Still, Anthony Davis’ return is a key positive. He came back earlier than expected. After his return, he explained what pushed him to do it. His words revealed his leadership and commitment.

“We were playing with six, seven, eight guys who were coming in after playing a game 40, 42 minutes drained, tired, having to play back-to-backs, having to come in and still (weight) lift and get their shots (up)…That was a motivator for me. I knew I was going (to come back) just because of the amount of games we had left. And not even that, just the position we were in, too,” stated Davis to Marc J Spears.

The criticism directed at Anthony Davis has only fueled his motivation. As several teammates went down with injuries, Davis stepped up as a leader and accelerated his recovery to help the team snap their rough NBA stretch. He has not reached peak form yet. Still, the Mavericks won both games he played since returning. His presence changed the team’s structure evidencing how important he is to head coach Jason Kidd.

Despite Davis is now eligible to play for the Mavericks, his return to full form will take time. In recent games, he has not played more than 30 minutes. That is a decent amount of time, but not enough to reach his best level. He knows he is not there yet. Still, he understands that playing regularly is the best way to recover his rhythm.

Anthony Davis #3 of the Dallas Mavericks warms up prior to the game against the Orlando Magic at the Kia Center on March 27, 2025 in Orlando, Florida.

Mavericks star Anthony Davis makes surprising confession about injury in his debut

Following his debut injury with the Dallas Mavericks, speculation quickly emerged about Anthony Davis’ physical readiness upon joining his new team. However, months after his arrival, the now-Mavs star revealed that he had been dealing with an abdominal injury sustained during his time with the Lakers previous his surprising trade.

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“If I could do it over, I would probably take a couple more days…When the trade happened, I was on my way to come back against possibly the [Los Angeles] Clippers with the Lakers [on Feb. 4]. But when the trade happened, you got to leave and go to the next city, go through your physical. And I had to go to meet them in Philly, try to get everything situated. So, I didn’t have my treatment gear that I needed. So, that was like three days of not treating [the injury] and being on a protocol that I’ve been on,” confessed Davis.

This situation exposes the Dallas Mavericks. They rushed to debut Anthony Davis and ignored the seriousness of his injury. Davis later admitted that he should not have played in that first game. Resting could have reduced the risk. It might not have prevented the injury entirely, but it would have improved his chances.