On Monday night, the Dallas Mavericks got back one of their best players and the main asset in the Luka Doncic trade.
All-Star forward Anthony Davis returned for the Mavericks in Brooklyn against the Nets after missing 18 games with an abductor strain.
Davis, who was on a minutes restriction, scored 12 points, six rebounds, and three assists in 27 minutes of action, and the Mavs defeated the Nets 120-101.
With the win, Dallas(35-37) has won two straight and kept pace with the Suns for the 10th and final spot in the Play-In Tournament.
The 32-year-old Davis says it wasn’t about how he felt physically, it was more so the mental part of the game.
“Physically, I felt great,” he said. ”It’s the mental aspect. When you’re coming off something like that, to be mentally ready to go out and play.”
Mavs head coach Jason Kidd was happy with what he saw from Davis in his 27-minute run.
“We’ve tried to keep his run short, and then we tried to, you know, keep him under his minutes,” Kidd said. “And I thought he did an incredible job. I thought his rhythm was good, and just being able to play for the rest of the guys. Sometimes, when you get a player back like AD, you want to throw the ball to him every time, and I thought the guys did a good job of being aggressive, and then the ball found him.”
A lot has happened since Davis last stepped on the court on February 8. Kyrie Irving went down with a torn ACL, Daniel Gafford went down with an MCL sprain, and the team struggled. There was talk that Davis would be shut down for the season, but AD said he knew he’d be back, and he’s back.
With 12 games left, Dallas has a shot at the Play-In Tournament. Gafford and Dereck Lively II could be back before the end of the season, so anything is possible. However, making playoff run won’t be possible without a healthy Davis.
