DALLAS – Harrison Barnes will remain in street clothes tonight at 7:30 when the Dallas Mavericks play their much-anticipated home opener against the Minnesota Timberwolves at American Airlines Center.
Meanwhile, the Mavs expect forward Dirk Nowitzki to miss at least the remaining seven games they’ll play this month as he continues to rehab his sore left ankle.
Barnes strained his right hamstring during the first week of training camp and missed the Mavs’ four preseason games and Wednesday’s regular season opener against Phoenix. The Mavs were holding out hope that the seven-year veteran would be able to play against the Timberwolves, but that won’t be the case.
Now the Mavs are hopeful that Barnes’ injury will mend in time for him to play in Monday’s home game against the Chicago Bulls.
“He’s not going to play tonight,” coach Rick Carlisle said following Saturday morning’s shootaround at the Lympo practice facilities. “He worked hard yesterday, he had a hard morning workout today.
“We’ll see where things are come Monday. He’s made steady progress without setbacks, so that’s very good news.”
Barnes led the Mavs in scoring in each of the past two seasons with 19.2 points and 18.9 points per game, respectively. Without him the offense struggled and scored just 100 points during Wednesday’s 21-point loss in Phoenix.
“It’s just a different game for us if Harrison is not out there,” Carlisle said. “It’s very important we get him back, and when he’s ready he will start, so there’s no confusion about that.
“But the No. 1 thing is to get him healthy, and in the meantime we’ve got to play better than we did Wednesday night, obviously.”
In the meantime, Nowitzki also missed the four preseason games and the regular season opener in Phoenix while nursing the injury that he underwent surgery for on back on Apr. 5. The 21-year veteran was working on the stationary bicycle Saturday morning while Carlisle was having his post-practice interview session with the media.
“He’s on that machine over there and he’s doing a lot of cardio stuff,” Carlisle said. “It’s obviously not the same as being on the court, so hopefully he’s working to getting back on the court at some point sooner than later, but I don’t have a timetable. I just don’t.”
The first game the Mavs play next month is a home game on Nov. 2 against the New York Knicks. Then they won’t play again until they host Washington on Nov. 6, followed by a Nov. 7 contest in Utah before they return home to entertain the Oklahoma City Thunder on Nov. 10.
“It’s going to be November, at least,” Carlisle said, referring to the earliest he expects Nowitzki to play. “And we miss him. There’s no question.
“Not having that guy in the starting lineup on opening night has never been a situation this franchise has experienced. Getting him healthy and back feeling good is a major priority. He’s living in the training room.”
Share and comment