Kyrie Irving was unable to attend the Dallas Mavericks’ practice on Friday due to an excused absence. He joined the team in Memphis before Saturday’s loss to the Grizzlies, but was considered questionable to play due to right foot soreness before being ruled out altogether.
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Irving had played 41 minutes during the Mavs’ loss against the New Orleans Pelicans, which had caused the foot soreness he’s dealing with now. He attended the morning shootaround on Saturday and had worked to get to a point where he could play, but was unable to do so.
“Yesterday, the soreness, playing him 41 minutes the other night (in New Orleans) with the absence yesterday and having him here today – he moved at shootaround but the soreness is a concern,” Mavs coach Jason Kidd said before Saturday’s game.
The Mavs continued to list Irving as questionable to play ahead of Tuesday’s matchup against the Grizzlies. Being able to return to Dallas and use the team’s facilities will help them to take a better look at the injury and to manage it.
“This morning, being aware of the soreness, he tried to go through shootaround, went through shootaround, and from that point felt like we had to take a look at it when we got back home,” Kidd said on Saturday. “So the best thing is to sit him tonight.”
Luka Doncic has already been ruled out for Tuesday’s game and it remains to be seen when he’ll be able to return to the lineup. He has dealt with a quad injury since shortly after the NBA All-Star Break, but it went unmentioned until a recent loss against the Phoenix Suns. He described his leg as being “weaker” and making it challenging for him to push off of it.
Doncic left the Mavs’ loss against the Pelicans midway through after being unable to play through the discomfort. The latest on his quad injury relating to a potential timetable is just that he didn’t travel to Memphis and he’s considered day-to-day. More updates should come this week.
“He’s day-to-day,” Kidd said of Doncic’s status after Friday’s practice. “So we’ll see how he feels. He will not go on the trip (to Memphis).”
With the Mavs continuing to rack up losses as one of the least successful teams in the NBA since the All-Star Break, it’s been as untimely as imaginable to lose both Doncic and Irving. Each game that doesn’t involve both superstars is one less game for the team to build continuity together.
The Mavs currently find themselves in the play-in tournament picture without much of an outlook to climb the ladder.
Source: yardbarker.com
