This season, even in those rare moments when injuries don’t happen to the Mavericks, they seem to have a negative impact on them.
It’s T-minus 10 games and counting in the regular season and the Mavericks are locked in a struggle with Sacramento and Phoenix for the final two spots in the Western Conference play-in tournament.
All three of them had 35 wins going into Tuesday’s games.
The Mavericks and Suns had 37 losses, the Kings 36.
And the Suns are in the midst of a torturous schedule that features 10 consecutive games against teams assured of making the playoffs, many of them with legitimate championships aspirations.
The Suns already are 2-0 in that run. And the news gets better for them. The Celtics visit Phoenix on Tuesday and Jayson Tatum will miss the game with an ankle sprain suffered Monday at Sacramento. It’s the first of two meetings in 10 days between the Suns and Celtics.
While it doesn’t guarantee a victory, the absence of Tatum certainly makes life a bit easier for the Suns, who after Tuesday have games at Minnesota, at home against Houston and at Milwaukee before seeing the Celtics again on April 4.
The Kings have a slightly easier schedule but also must survive a six-game trip that includes games against Eastern Conference heavyweights Cleveland, Indiana and Detroit.
The Suns and Kings also play each other on the final day of the regular season.
The Mavericks hope it doesn’t come down to that since they have lost the tiebreaker against both the Kings and Suns. And they have no games left against either team.
What they do have working for them is half of their remaining games against teams who own losing records. Taking care of business against them is paramount.
And, the Mavericks have a little good injury news of their own. They will face New York on Tuesday with the Knicks missing star guard and former Maverick Jalen Brunson. The Knicks are 4-4 since Brunson suffered an ankle injury. Plus, the Mavericks have won each of their last two visits to Madison Square Garden.
Here’s a look at the remaining games for the teams vying for spots nine and 10 in the West:
Mavericks: @ New York, @ Orlando, @ Chicago, Brooklyn, Atlanta, @ LA Clippers (2), LA Lakers, Toronto, @ Memphis.
Suns: Boston, @ Minnesota, Houston, @ Milwaukee, @ Boston, @ New York, Golden State, Oklahoma City, San Antonio @ Sacramento.
Kings: Oklahoma City, Portland, @ Orlando, @ Indiana, @ Washington, @ Charlotte, @ Cleveland, @ Detroit, Denver, LA Clippers, Phoenix.
X: @ESefko
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