A just four days into their playoff tie against the Utah Jazz, the Dallas Mavericks confirmed on Tuesday that Luka Doncic He suffers from a strain in the calf of his left leg and they did not give a date for his possible return.
“Doncic has started treatment and there is no schedule for his return“The Mavericks said in a statement in which they noted that an MRI confirmed the point guard’s injury.
Doncic He was injured on Sunday in the Mavericks’ last game of the regular season before the NBA playoffs began.
The Slovenian star had to leave the match due to a strain in the calf of his left leg, with 2.24 remaining in the third quarter.
By then, Doncic he was the best of his team with 26 points, 8 rebounds and 9 assists.
“I hope it’s not too serious“, Mavericks coach Jason Kidd pointed out after a game that the Mavericks ended up beating the San Antonio Spurs (130-120).
Kidd explained that his plan was that Doncic and the Mavericks starters they would play only until the end of the third quarter and that they would not step on the court in the last quarter.
On the last day before the ”playoffs, the Mavericks, who had already guaranteed home court factor In the first round of the qualifiers, the only chance to reach third place in the West was at stake if the Golden State Warriors (53-29) punctured against the New Orleans Pelicans (in the end they won 107-128).
After a great season in which they have substantially improved their defense, the Mavericks have finished fourth in the West with 52 wins and 30 losses.
The Dallas team will start their first round of the playoffs this Saturday against the Utah Jazz from Donovan Mitchell y Rudy Gobert (fifth in the West at 49-33).
One to the ms, Doncic He has been the absolute leader of the Mavericks and has managed an average of 28.4 points, 9.1 rebounds and 8.7 assists per game.
The Mavericks will face a Jazz mired in huge doubts, but the absence of Doncic could radically alter the forecast for this tie.
Those from Utah have finished the course losing several games that they clearly won in the fourth quarter, the last of them last week against the Phoenix Suns after squandering a 17-point lead.