This is exactly why so many playoff-bound teams sat star players on the season’s final day.
Dallas had something to play for — a Mavericks win combined with a Suns’ loss would have moved Dallas up to the No. 3 seed — so Luka Doncic was out on the court Sunday. Then this happened.
Luka Dončić exited the game after suffering a left calf strain. pic.twitter.com/aJ1uJPf68N
— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) April 11, 2022
Doncic did not return to the game with what the team described as a calf strain.
The Mavericks are off until Saturday at 1 p.m. Eastern, when they tip-off their 4/5 series against the Utah Jazz. The Mavericks have looked like the most dangerous team outside Phoenix in the West of late and likely would be the betting favorite against the Jazz, but only if Doncic is healthy. There was no update on his status postgame, but Jeff Stotts of In Street Clothes gave some perspective.
Re: Luka: There’s a lot of variability in calf strains. The calf is actually a muscle complex made up of multiple muscles. Severity & location will factor into resulting recovery. Average time lost for calf strains in the NBA this season was 16 days (median 17, minimum = 3 days)
— Jeff Stotts (@InStreetClothes) April 11, 2022
If Doncic is unable to play in the first game or two of this series, it would be a huge swing — the Mavericks offense is 4.4 points per 100 possessions worse without Doncic this season. He is an MVP-level player who is the hub of everything they do on the offensive end of the court.
All eyes will be on the Mavericks’ injury reports this week.
