Luka Doncic, who has been sidelined with a wrist injury, will join the Dallas Mavericks on their upcoming road trip and might play as soon as Saturday against the Utah Jazz in Salt Lake City.
Doncic has missed the last five games but returned to practice with his teammates on Friday. It’s still uncertain whether he’ll play against the Jazz or Sunday in Portland, but he will be with the team.
“He’s doing his individual workouts. Everything I’ve heard or seen is trending in the right direction,” said Dallas coach Jason Kidd on Wednesday.
This season, unlike last year when the Mavericks struggled without Doncic, Dallas has managed well without their star since his injury on Nov. 19 against New Orleans. The Mavs have a 4-1 record during that stretch, including wins over Atlanta (129-119) on Monday and New York (129-114) on Wednesday.
In these victories, Dallas set a team record with four players scoring at least 20 points in each game. Against the Knicks, Naji Marshall scored 24, Kyrie Irving had 23, and both Quentin Grimes and Spencer Dinwiddie scored 21.
Marshall has been especially effective in Doncic’s absence, averaging 23 points on 63.3 percent shooting, including making half of his 3-pointers in the last four games.
Dallas’ depth has been key to their 11-8 record, with at least six players scoring double digits in each of the last six games. In their 123-120 win over Denver on Nov. 22, seven players scored in double figures.
In contrast, the Jazz have faced difficulties with scoring, but their players are gaining valuable experience due to injuries.
In their 122-103 home loss to Denver on Wednesday, Utah was missing Lauri Markkanen (personal reasons), John Collins (left knee contusion), Jordan Clarkson (left plantar fasciitis), and Kyle Filipowski (lower leg inflammation).
“We will play some lineups tonight that none of us in this room have seen,” Jazz coach Will Hardy said before the game against Denver. “We will play some lineups tonight that maybe none of us in this room had even thought about. But in some ways, these nights are fun because we get to lean into our creativity as a staff and as a team.”
Collin Sexton led Utah with 26 points, Keyonte George had 23, Walker Kessler added 16 points and 12 rebounds, and Brice Sensabaugh contributed 13 points off the bench.
Nikola Jokic scored 21 of his 30 points in the first half, helping the Nuggets turn a 12-point deficit into a 10-point lead for a comfortable win.
“We still have these little windows of the game that turn into kind of like a little disaster,” Hardy said. “That four-to-five-minute window is really where the game was decided.”
The Jazz were also happy to give Oscar Tshiebwe, the 2022 national player of the year from Kentucky, his first game action with the team. He finished with three points and nine rebounds.
“I love everything about Oscar. He just makes you feel good,” Hardy said. “He’s such a good human being. I wish I was more like Oscar.”
