Dallas Mavericks star Luka Doncic is officially listed as doubtful for Sunday’s Game 4 due to a sprained left ankle that caused him to miss the 130-122 loss to the LA Clippers in the fourth quarter on Friday.
Coach Rick Carlisle said he expects the Mavs will not know if Doncic is available until minutes before tipoff.
“I believe this is likely to be a situation over a game-decision type, but I can not tell you the exact timing,” Carlisle said Saturday afternoon. “He’s not doing anything on the floor today. It’s treatment, and we’re trying to get him an MRI.”
Doncic was scheduled to receive an MRI Saturday morning, but Carlisle said there was a problem with the MRI machine on the NBA’s Walt Disney World campus in Lake Buena Vista, Florida, that the team was trying to resolve.
Game 4 is at 3.30pm ET on Sunday. The Clippers, the No. 2 seed in the Western Conference, have a 2-1 lead over the seventh-seeded Mavs in the first-round NBA playoff series.
“We have to measure a lot of things relative to how he feels, how the diagnostic test looks and what our coaches feel,” Carlisle said. “We’ll see. I wish I knew that right now, but I do not. Today is a big night in terms of how he feels tomorrow.”
Doncic fell after rolling his ankle while defending Kawhi Leonard on a drive to the court with 3:58 left in the third quarter. He immediately grabbed his left ankle. After being helped to his feet, Doncic jumped on his right foot from the floor and up the tunnel.
After regaining the ankle, Doncic returned at the start of the fourth quarter and was clearly bumped before leaving with 9:02 left. The Mavs announced minutes later that Doncic would not be returning.
“It’s not that bad,” said Doncic, who has missed 11 games this season due to two fouls on his right ankle. “Honestly, I was lucky it’s my left ankle. It’s not my right. It’s a little scattered. We’ll know more [Saturday]. “
Carlisle said Doncic will have significant input on whether he plays, along with Casey Smith, Dallas’ director of player health and performance who is primarily responsible for the 21-year-old All-Star’s treatment.
“He plays hurt on a very regular basis. However, we do not want him to play injured,” Carlisle said. “That’s a different situation. You bring in the greater risk. But we’ll see. We’ll see where things are tomorrow. The quick turnaround presents more challenges, but we’ll see. In some ways, it’s what we can do. to make the situation better, and in one way or another you have to deal with Mother Nature. “
Doncic averaged 35.0 points, 7.5 rebounds and 8.0 assists, while the Mavs and Clippers split the first two games of the series. He had 13 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists in Game 3, becoming the third-youngest player in NBA history to record a playoff triple-double, just behind Magic Johnson and LeBron James.
Carlisle said Doncic did not dispel the pollution by playing a few minutes to start the fourth quarter. After evaluating Doncic and re-informing his ankle, Smith informed Carlisle that Doncic wanted to return to the game, but it soon became clear that Doncic’s mobility had been significantly compromised.
Doncic sent to the Dallas bench that he needed to leave the game. He knocked on his chair in frustration before returning with Smith to the locker room.
“I just wanted to get in,” said Doncic, who was 4-of-14 from the field in the loss. “We still had a chance to win and help my teammates. Of course I could still walk a little bit, but I couldn’t express my left leg, so it was better to go out and let someone else play.”
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