Coming into the 2022 NBA Playoffs, the Dallas Mavericks were a popular dark horse pick by people to challenge for the title. But, those hopes had a damper put on them when superstar point guard Luka Doncic injured his calf in the series finale.
As a result, Doncic was going to miss the start of the postseason as no one knew how long it would be until he came back. While the injury wasn’t considered a serious one, playing through any injury is never easy.
The Mavericks looked lost without their best player in Game 1, losing 99-93 to the Utah Jazz. The offense was out of sync, which was to be expected. But, the defensive effort was still there, which was encouraging.
In Game 2, the defensive intensity continued, but the offense flowed much better. Jalen Brunson led the way with 41 points, taking on the role of Doncic in the lineup with eight rebounds and five assists. He and Maxi Kleber combined to shoot 14-of-21 from the 3-point line combined, pacing the Mavericks who shot 46.8 percent from the 3-point line as a team.
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That led to a 110-104 victory, as Dallas tied the series back up before heading to Salt Lake City for Games 3 and 4. The Mavericks look like they will be getting a huge boost for that game as Luka Doncic is trending toward returning to the court.
“If there’s no risk of (further) injury, I’ll be out there,” Doncic said on Wednesday after practice. “Today and yesterday I did a little bit. We shouldn’t rush anything, but step by step, I think I’m improving a lot, and I’m getting better.”
Getting Doncic back in the lineup would certainly be good news for the Dallas Mavericks. They have been okay without him in the lineup, going 9-10, including the postseason. But, if they want to advance and make some noise in the postseason, they need him back in the lineup.
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Head coach Jason Kidd was optimistic about Doncic’s chances of playing sooner than later as well. He said there have been no setbacks and that everything the training staff is asking him to do he has been able to get through.
“He’s doing the work that the medical staff has asked him to do, and there hasn’t been any setback,” Kidd said. “He feels great, so I think he just continues to come in with that good attitude that at some point, he’ll get that green light to play.”
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Failing to take a commanding 2-0 lead on the road is something that could come back to haunt the Utah Jazz. Even if he isn’t 100 percent, 75-80 percent of Luka Doncic is better than a majority of players in the NBA. Utah has home-court advantage now in the series, but that can easily flip back to the Dallas Mavericks with their superstar back in the mix.
