A stunning comparison between DeAndre Ayton and Anthony Davis highlights the Luka Doncic trade coup

As it is The Los Angeles Lakers improved to 11–4 with a 140–126 win over the Utah Jazz on Tuesday night, newly released statistics further highlighted the disparity in sales of the blockbuster it sent Luka Dončić to Los Angeles and brought Anthony Davis that the Dallas Mavericks.

A graphic posted by ClutchPoints on X, formerly known as Twitter, reveals that Deandre Ayton there is more total minutes recorded for the Lakers this season than Davis had for Dallas — despite Ayton arriving as a buyout deal and Davis being the main acquisition in the Doncic trade. Ayton played 425 minutes in 14 games with Los Angeles, while Davis logged just 415 minutes in 14 appearances with the Mavericks dating back to February.

Ayton, 27, signed with the Lakers this offseason after reaching a buyout agreement with the Portland Trail Blazers. He has since become a consistent contributor for Los Angeles, averaging 16.5 points and 8.8 rebounds while shooting a career-best 69.9% from the field in 30.4 minutes per game. Against Utah, Ayton had 20 points, 14 rebounds, one assist, one steal and one block while shooting 10-for-13 in 30 minutes.

Deandre Ayton has played a total of 425 minutes in 14 games with the Lakers this season 🙌

Anthony Davis has played a total of 415 minutes in 14 games for the Mavs since being traded for Luka Doncic 😳 pic.tvitter.com/mMlKSDNIoVB

— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) November 19, 2025

Injuries and trade rumors cloud Anthony Davis’ tenure with the Mavericks

Davis, on the other hand, has been limited to just five appearances this season. The 32-year-old averaged 20.8 points, 10.2 rebounds, 2.2 assists, 1.6 steals and 1.2 blocks in all those contests, but hasn’t played since Oct. 29, when he left the Mavericks’ win over the Indiana Pacers after just seven minutes with a calf strain.

The Mavericks provided a medical update on Sunday, stating that Davis would be reevaluated in 7-10 days. Meanwhile, Dallas continued to struggle, falling to 4-11 and currently 13th in the Western Conference after a 120-96 loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves on Monday night.

According to a report from ESPN’s Tim McMahon, The Mavericks are now expected to explore trade options for Davis before the deadline. MacMahon noted that several team sources anticipate Dallas will test the market for the 10-time All-Star as part of a broader re-evaluation process.

The comparison between Ayton and Davis — combined with Doncic’s dominant play in Los Angeles — only heightened criticism of the Mavericks’ decision-making. Doncic is currently averaging 34.6 points, 9.0 assists, 8.5 rebounds and 1.9 steals per game, cementing the Lakers as the No. 4 seed in the Western Conference and pulling him into early MVP consideration.