The Dallas Mavericks are dealing with a major injury crisis which is putting tremendous stress on their roster right now. Anthony Davis got hurt on his Mavericks debut against the Houston Rockets, with the Mavericks cautiously not releasing an exact timeline of return for the star. Daniel Gafford would pick up an injury earlier this week as well, ensuring every active center on the Mavericks is on the injury list.
The return timetable for both Gafford and Davis was released by ESPN last night after their shock win over the Miami Heat.
“Dallas Mavericks center Daniel Gafford will sit out at least six weeks because of a Grade 3 sprain of the MCL in his right knee, sources told ESPN on Thursday night.”
“Sources said All-Star forward/center Anthony Davis, the headliner of the return package in the Luka Doncic trade, was expected to be sidelined for at least four weeks as the Mavs proceed with caution in his recovery from the left adductor strain suffered in his Dallas debut.”
After missing Luka Doncic for the majority of the season due to injury before trading him away, the Mavericks have continued losing multiple roster players to long-term absences. Gafford and Davis join an injury list that already features centers Dereck Lively II and Dwight Powell.
Lively is still over a month away from returning from a foot injury while Powell’s return timetable from a hip injury is unclear at the moment.
The Mavericks Injury List Is Massive
The center crisis isn’t the only thing plaguing the Mavericks right now. Their roster as a whole is battered right now, with the team electing to play an eight-man rotation where one of their two-way players just played two minutes. They still beat the Heat 118-113 behind a team effort led by Dante Exum and two-way signee Kessler Edwards.
They had eight players ruled out for this game against the Heat. Alongside the four centers, the Mavericks were without Caleb Martin (hip), PJ Washington (ankle), Kyrie Irving (shoulder), and Klay Thompson (foot) as well.
Irving and Thompson were likely out because it was the second night of a back-to-back, but all the other players are in the middle of multi-game absences. Dante Exum also left the Heat win with a minor injury, but no reports have confirmed if he will miss time as a result of it.
Irving and Klay will be good to go after All-Star Weekend, but we still don’t have a timetable for Washington. His absence is hurting the franchise a lot as well, with the team being bereft of quality rotational players in the frontcourt.
Naji Marshall is playing as the team’s power forward, with two-way forward Kessler Edwards playing as their center. They signed G Leaguer Kylor Kelley to a two-way deal but haven’t been using him at all even with their current injury crisis.
The team doesn’t have an open roster spot to sign an emergency center, so they could utilize a two-way contract by likely releasing Kelley or a 10-day contract.
Unfortunately, there’s no solid big on the market except JaVale McGee. The team didn’t have a good experience with him in 2022-23, so they’re unlikely to bring him back. This leaves no real option, so the Mavericks have to weather this stretch.
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