The Dallas Mavericks and their fans, especially, have endured a tough season. They started off the year by trading Luka Doncic for Anthony Davis. And things just seemed to go downhill from there. AD got injured after an impressive debut and missed several games. Meanwhile, one by one, all of the Mavs’ centers started to get injured. And then…
But since then, they’ve managed an incredible comeback to secure a postseason for themselves. But can they close out the regular season with a win over the Memphis Grizzlies? Let’s find out by diving into the Mavs’ injury report for the upcoming game.
Dallas Mavericks Injury Report – Will Anthony Davis play against the Memphis Grizzlies?
Well, there are eight players on the Mavs’ injury report for the upcoming Grizzlies game. Even so, it’s not the worst injury report they’ve had this year. But getting back to Anthony Davis, he is listed as OUT of the Grizzlies game to manage his strained left adductor. With that out of the way, let’s look at who else finds themselves on the injury report for the Grizzlies game.
Kessler Edwards – OUT (G-League; Two-Way) Kyrie Irving – OUT (Left Knee; Surgery) Dereck Lively II – Doubtful (Right Ankle; Stress Fracture) Caleb Martin – QUESTIONABLE (Right Hip; Strain) Maxence-Olivier Prosper – OUT (Right Wrist; Surgery) Klay Thompson – OUT (Left Foot; Sprain) PJ Washington – OUT (Left Ankle; Sprain)
We already know that Kyrie Irving will not be returning this season after that devastating ligament tear. But it’s a promising sign that after suffering a stress fracture, Dereck Lively II is nearing a return. Even if it’s not a guarantee that he will play against the Pacers.
However, players like Klay Thompson and AD being out is worrying for Mavs fans. Now, Jason Kidd might be resting them for the upcoming Play-In.. But their exclusions are still concerning, nonetheless. Why? Well, just because they’re in the Play-In doesn’t mean there’s nothing left to play for in the regular season. So, let’s see what’s on the line for the Mavs.
Is Jason Kidd making a blunder by resting his stars against the Grizzlies?
Like we said earlier, the fact that the Dallas Mavericks are going to have a postseason at all is kind of impressive. But does that mean they should settle for smaller victories? That’s because by resting their players ahead of this game, the Mavs are virtually giving up on gaining home-court advantage in the first round of the Play-In.
As things stand, the Mavs will take on the Sacramento Kings. While the Kings aren’t as threatening as they used to be with De’Aaron Fox among their ranks, they still have a lot of dangerous players. And going up against Domantas Sabonis, Zach LaVine, and co. doesn’t seem like the best decision.
via Imago
However, we also need to consider the Mavs fans’ attitude towards their team right now. Mavericks fans have been hostile ever since the Luka Doncic trade. While their rage is directed more towards Nico Harrison than anyone. Even so, the atmosphere at the American Airlines Center has been off this year.
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Regardless, this is simply one possibility out of many others. It is also possible that the players on the injury report genuinely cannot make it to the Grizzlies game. Whatever the case may be, Coach Kidd certainly seems comfortable giving up home-court advantage to ensure his players’ fitness. And we can’t fault him for that, can we?