The Luka trade blew up. The “Fire Nico” chants worked. And now the Dallas Mavericks are apparently ready to hit the red button on everything that came after it, including Anthony Davis and Klay Thompson.

According to multiple reports, the post–Nico Harrison Mavs are preparing for a radical reset. Anthony Davis and Klay Thompson? Very much on the “thank you for your service, let’s find you a new home” list.

This isn’t just fan-theory Twitter.

DallasHoopsJournal flat-out reported that the Mavericks are widely expected to trade Anthony Davis and Klay Thompson after firing general manager Nico Harrison. The key detail: Dallas plans to work with both players’ camps to find “logical/desired landing spots.” That sounds more like a managed exit than a messy divorce.

Then you have Sports Illustrated’s Chris Mannix, who dropped the line that set NBA front offices scrolling:

Mark Cuban is “back at the table”… and “radical roster changes have already been discussed… Big changes could be coming to Big D.”

On paper, trading Anthony Davis should feel insane. He’s still putting up numbers:

• As a Maverick overall: 20.3 points, 10.1 rebounds, 3.6 assists, 0.9 steals, 1.9 blocks in 14 games.
• This season: 20.8 points, 10.2 boards, 2.2 assists, 1.6 steals, 1.2 blocks on 52.0% shooting.

Those are All-NBA-level box scores. The problem? They exist in tiny samples and surrounded by alarms.

Davis has played just five games this season. He’s currently out with a left calf strain, and nobody knows when he’ll suit up again. Given modern history with calf-to-Achilles horror stories, that’s terrifying for a 33-year-old big man who reported to camp at 268 pounds, 15 pounds heavier than his last listed weight with the Lakers.

Financially, he’s a huge swing. Davis is making $54.1 million this year with no no-trade clause. That makes him both:

• A genuine star upgrade for a desperate contender
• And a giant cap slot, the Mavs can flip for multiple pieces and future assets

Inside Dallas, the emotional attachment to AD may already be gone. Harrison tied his reputation to the Luka-for-AD blockbuster. He’s out. New decision-makers Michael Finley and Matt Riccardi didn’t make that bet. They’re looking at a 3–9 team, 14th in the West, and asking the obvious: If we’re building around Cooper Flagg, why are we centering the offense and the cap sheet around an aging, hurt big?

That’s why SI called moving Davis “non-negotiable” if you’re serious about Flagg. They share the same real estate. Flagg wants to be a modern, on-ball power forward. AD plants himself in that same zone. At some point, you choose.

Klay Thompson: From Splash Legacy to Salary Slot

Klay Thompson’s situation is different. Less dramatic, more depressing.

He’s averaging a career-low 8.5 points per game, shooting 32.0% from the field and 28.9% from three. He started the first seven games of the season, then Jason Kidd sent him to the bench. That’s not a political move. That’s a “you’re not helping us win” move.

For a guy whose entire value is built on shooting and spacing, those numbers are brutal. Defensively, he no longer slides with quick guards. He plays more like a small forward, but Dallas already has a glut of forwards and big wings.

Klay earns $16.7 million this season. No, no-trade clause. Not an impossible contract to move, especially for teams that still believe in his shooting DNA and playoff experience. For Dallas, he simply fits the wrong timeline. A 3–9 team trying to pivot to Cooper Flagg’s prime doesn’t need a struggling 30-something wing eating minutes and usage.

So he lands in the same bucket as Davis: respected name, huge legacy, awkward present.

This isn’t just a talent play. It’s a power play.

When Patrick Dumont and Miriam Adelson bought a controlling interest in the Mavs, Mark Cuban slid into minority-owner status and, eventually, the background. Nico Harrison ran the show, made the Luka-AD trade, and gambled big on a win-now window.

That window shattered. The Mavs landed Cooper Flagg, caught a few lucky lottery breaks, and still sit at 3–9. Fans revolted. “Fire Nico” became the soundtrack at the American Airlines Center. Ownership listened.

Now Harrison is gone. Finley and Riccardi run basketball operations. And per Mannix, Cuban is “back at the table” and talking “radical” change. That radical part seems pretty straightforward:

• Trade Davis
• Shop Klay
• Move other vets who don’t fit Flagg’s arc
• Rebuild cap flexibility and recoup draft capital
• Center everything on Cooper Flagg’s development

In other words: stop pretending this is a contender and start acting like a team that stumbled into a generational prospect and doesn’t want to blow it again.

So what now?

Don’t expect Dallas to dump AD and Klay overnight. Both have big names and tricky salaries. The front office will likely slow-play this toward the trade deadline:

• Work with Davis’ camp to find teams that believe he can still be their missing piece.
• Shop Klay to contenders who need shooting, culture, and are willing to treat him like a specialist, not a star.
• Take back picks, young guards, and wings who fit around Flagg’s skill set.

The risk? You move on from two Hall of Fame names and still don’t hit on the return. The reward? You finally stop living in Luka’s shadow, Nico’s shadow, and the “what if” era.

If the reporting holds, though, one thing feels locked in: Anthony Davis and Klay Thompson were the face of the post-Luka gamble. Cooper Flagg is the face of whatever comes next. Dallas seems ready to choose the future.