Dallas — after a five-game injury layoff, the dallas mavericks brought dereck lively ii back in the lineup for monday’s 125-120 victory over the new orleans pelicans. Luka doncic has missed the mavs’ three previous games due to a right ankle injury, and there is hope for a return.
Doncic is deemed a questionable injury risk by the mavs ahead of wednesday’s matchup with the los angeles lakers. When asked about doncic’s status on monday, mavs coach jason kidd said, “we can only hope that the california sun helps us heal ourselves.” According to the injury report, derrick jones jr. (right calf contusion) and grant williams (right ankle sprain) are among the players likely to play against the lakers. Dante exum will be sidelined with a right plantar injury. In the midst of a string of injuries, the mavs’ kyrie irving and tim hardaway jr. have stepped up a smidgeon in recent weeks, scoring 83 points against the pelicans. Irving had 42 points, while hardaway had 41. Irving was a force in dallas’ seven-game homestand, scoring 34.3 points, 7.1 rebounds, and 6.0 assists. During the same stretch, hardaway averaged 21.6 points, 3.4 rebounds, and 1.9 assists for the mavs.
It’s the second time two guys scored 40 points in franchise history. “kai and luka did it last year,” kidd said of irving and hardaway. “timmy (tim hardaway jr.) was a hero this afternoon for us because he stayed with us and made some great shots.” Kai was calm the whole afternoon, taking what they gave him.
On this homestand, he’s been doing it. He’s leading us, and the guys are following him. He puts us in a good position to win. “throughout the season, the mavs have dealt with many injuries on the wing, with hardaway proving to be able to step into the starting lineup when required and make a difference. Hardaway has thrived in the sixth-man role since being pushed to it before the season, according to kidd. “we’ve asked him to come off the bench, we’ve asked him to start, we’ve asked him to protect zion, we’re asking him to protect everyone.” He’s just a pro.” the mavs have been dealing with a significant number of injuries.
Despite maxi kleber and lively’s return to action recently, as well as doncic and jones’ upgrade status, there has been a lot of progress toward being fit. “with all the injuries, it’s unclear what kind of team we are,” kidd said. “with all the injuries, i think we’re setting a franchise record here with different starting lineups,” he said.
We can’t deny that every team will make it to the playoffs. “the mavs finished the season with 27-14, their best start since the 2019-20 season.” If doncic returns to the team’s lineup, it’ll bring the team that much closer to being in a good spot to maintain continuity with its main players.
