Mavs Players Summer Surgeries and Their Effect on the Upcoming Season
Dallas Mavs fans and front office have high expectations going into the 2025-26 NBA regular season with arguably the best frontcourt in the league. Two of their key contributors are shaking off surgeries from this summer, however. Third-year center Dereck Lively II and veteran Anthony Davis both had surgeries in July. With the absence of star guard Kyrie Irving for the whole or most of the upcoming season, questions arise about how quickly the team can find its footing.
Davis had a procedure done to repair a detached retina. Lively underwent surgery to clean up bone spurs in his foot and had already been out more than two months last season due to a stress fracture. Both players are expected to be ready to go by training camp in October. The Dallas Mavs will need to closely monitor their progress and plan the timing of their returns correctly.
The Mavs acquired Anthony Davis in a blockbuster trade this past season with the Los Angeles Lakers. Davis has played only 11 games with the Mavs, including two play-in games in which he averaged 33.5 points and 9 rebounds. For the portion of the 2024-25 season with the Lakers, he averaged 25.7 points, 11.9 rebounds, 3.4 assists, and 2.1 blocks in 42 games. Without Irving, the load on both ends of the floor will be on Davis’s back. Fans hope he will be able to mimic his prior success and lead the Dallas Mavs to another playoff run.
Lively will be going into his third year in the NBA and has shown great promise already. He averaged 8.7 points, 7.5 rebounds, 2.4 assists, and 1.6 blocks per game last regular season. Standing at seven-foot-one, he has a large presence on the floor, is good with the pick-and-roll, and helps lead the defense. The Mavs view Lively as a key part of their future, especially after putting up similar numbers to the regular season in the playoffs in 21 games.
If either player is slow to start the season for some reason, head coach Jason Kidd may have to rely on more minutes from Cooper Flagg, Dwight Powell, and/or Daniel Gafford. The Mavs would lose size in their frontcourt and have to make adjustments to stay competitive in the Western Conference. Team officials remain optimistic, stressing that the surgeries were not major, designed to prevent lingering issues and further discomfort. The expectation is that both Davis and Lively will be ready in October.
Dallas’s ability to stay competitive early will rely on how quickly Davis and Lively can regain form. For a franchise entering a new era, Davis’s star power and Lively’s continued growth could transform the Mavs into a legitimate title threat. If both big men stay healthy, Dallas has the potential not just to remain relevant in the playoff race, but to reestablish itself at the top of the West. If not, the Mavs risk falling into the middle of the pack during a critical season of transition.
