PHOENIX – Clarity was tough to come by when it comes to the left calf injury that has sidelined Luka Dončić.
The Mavericks’ superstar point guard “will be evaluated sometime in the future,” coach Jason Kidd said before the Mavericks opened a four-game trip against the Phoenix Suns Friday night.
The Mavericks also played without Dereck Lively II, who is out with a left hip contusion.
“Injuries are injuries,” Kidd said. “He’s had a couple this year. We’ve played without him. Next-man-up mentality and that’s what we’re facing now, not just with Luka but with D-Live out. The depth of our team is being tested and those guys in that locker room are up for that test.”
Though he has had lots of relatively minor aches and pains, Dončić has been a durable player when it comes to not missing extended stretches. He hasn’t missed more than five games in a row since December, 2021, when he was out for 10 consecutive games.
The challenge for the Mavericks now is to hold the fort while Luka is out.
It’s a challenge, but even outsiders know that a team that improved itself over the offseason after reaching the NBA Finals last spring should not be overlooked.
“They’re still really well coached,” Phoenix coach Mike Budenholzer said. “And Kyrie Irving is one of the great talents in our league. What he can do some nights, he’s a handful. They’ve put together a group that I think fits around both Dončić and Irving. So it’s probably just a lot more Irving and those guys maybe get a little bit more opportunity. But their spacing is good, their pick-and-roll game is good. They’ve been together. They have chemistry.
“They’re tough, obviously, with Dončić. But they find ways to be really good without him, also.”
Kidd said one of the biggest challenges he’ll face in trying to keep the Mavericks near the top of the Western Conference standings will be not overextending players.
In particular, Kyrie Irving.
“The big picture is always in focus,” Kidd said. “Running Kai up over 40 minutes, that puts us in a different situation. We have to lean on our leader to help us, but that doesn’t mean running his minutes up to 40, 42, to find a way to win.
“We believe we have other guys that can eat minutes and play at a high level and will have that opportunity with Luka out.”
X: @ESefko
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