Mavericks' stunning AD trade makes one thing crystal clear for the Spurs

The San Antonio Spurs now have one less competitor to worry about as they continue their ascension in the Western Conference. In a shocking blockbuster deal, the Dallas Mavericks just sent Anthony Davis to the Washington Wizards in exchange for salary filler, some mediocre prospects and draft capital. Here are the full details, per Shams Charania of ESPN:

Wizards receive: Anthony Davis, D’Angelo Russell, Jaden Hardy and Dante Exum

Mavericks receive: Khris Middleton, Marvin Bagley III, Malaki Branham, AJ Johnson, two first-round picks and three second-round picks

With Anthony Davis out the door, the Mavericks are clearly heading into a rebuild. That’s a good sign for the Spurs.

San Antonio can stop worrying about the Mavericks (for now)

On paper, a trio of Cooper Flagg, Anthony Davis, and Kyrie Irving, flanked by impactful role players such as Klay Thompson, P.J. Washington, and Daniel Gafford, looked like a formidable force. Injuries prevented us from ever seeing the group’s full potential, and now, in the words of Kanye West, “I guess we’ll never know.”

With Davis gone, Irving injured and more moves potentially in the works, all signs point to a rebuild for the Mavs. They already have their franchise player of the future in Cooper Flagg, but it will take them time to reshuffle the deck and assemble a new young core. That means a team that’s already near the bottom of the West should be even worse over the next couple years, which is somewhat of a relief for the Spurs.

San Antonio is on track to become a true juggernaut, and only a handful of teams seem suited to challenge them. Flagg, who’s in the midst of a special rookie year, is shaping up to be a foe Victor Wembanyama and company will have some epic duels with.

Luckily, Flagg won’t have the supporting cast to truly give the Silver and Black a run for their money for at least two or three years, even if the young phenom makes a massive leap next season.

Dallas wasn’t one of the Spurs’ strongest threats anyway, but they just got even weaker. That said, San Antonio can almost completely turn their heads away from their division rival for the time being and focus on the bigger fish instead.