DALLAS — Dallas Mavericks superstar point guard Luka Doncic may not be available to play in Sunday night’s Game 4 of the Western Conference quarterfinals against the Los Angeles Clippers, because of a cervical strain he dealt with in Game 3.
Doncic played through the injury during the second half of Friday’s 118-108 Clippers win, but was seen grimacing at various points through the second half, and he was icing it on multiple occasions. On Saturday afternoon, he was listed on the NBA’s injury report as “questionable” for Game 4.
“If you’re asking me if I think he’s going to play or not, I think he’s going to play,” said Mavericks Coach Rick Carlisle during Saturday’s media availability. “Questionable, generally from what I’ve seen this year with other teams and our team, is more likely to play than not play.”
Doncic has been exceptional throughout the series, averaging better than 38 points per game, along with nine rebounds and nine assists per contest. Without him, the Mavs offense would likely crater.
It’s hard to imagine him not playing, given that he played through the injury on Friday night, and given the importance of Game 4. But there is something to be said for adrenaline, and how that can push you to finish a game, much easier than playing an entire new game with that same injury.
“We’ll see tomorrow. I mean, these things…you wake up the next morning and it can be a heck of a lot worse than you thought. So, you know, we’ll see,” said Carlisle.
Regardless, the Mavs are looking at a tremendously important game Sunday. A second consecutive loss would hand Los Angeles all the momentum, as the series returns to their home floor at Staples Center.
And the possibility exists they may have to play that pivotal Game 4 without their best player.
