MAVS NEWS:

[ThisIStheYear]

The Maxi injury may have saved Kidd and the Mav’s season.

[mvossman]

The Maxi injury may have saved Kidd and the Mav’s season.

This gets old.  He had lost effectiveness at the 4 but was still a decent backup 5 (which would be handy right now) and the idea that he was costing us a bunch of games is hyperbole.

[Smitty]

The Mavs need to weather the storm. Hopefully the sickness that bit the team is long gone. Kyrie comes back by the OKC game 1/23? Then Luka and Exum for the Cavs 2 Feb?

I think the Mavs can go 6-6 to finish January. 

Remaining games:

Vs. POR  W
Vs. DEN  L
Vs. DEN  L
@ NOP (b2b)  L
Vs. OKC  W
@ CHA  L
Vs. MIN  L
@ OKC (b2b - Kyrie return?)  W
Vs. BOS  L
Vs. WSH  W
@ NOP  W
@ DET

6-6 leaves you 5 games over .500. If you win the remaining 33 games at a .700 rate (23-10), then you reach 50 wins.

There's some hopium for the day!

The Mavs need a win against Detroit to go 6-6 like I hoped. The news on Exum seems promising and the game against the Cavs, 2 Feb, still feels like a solid prediction. Maybe Luka's return is more likely 8 Feb against the Rockets, the start of a 4-game home-stand before the ASB.

[michaeltex]

Curious about what we should expect for Luka's conditioning when he returns. Recovering from a calf strain is going to restrict some of the conditioning work to maintain game shape. I'm hoping that recovering here in DAL provides better monitoring and preparation than if it was over the post-season.

Any updates other than the "wants to return before ASB"?

[KillerLeft]

This gets old.  He had lost effectiveness at the 4 but was still a decent backup 5 (which would be handy right now) and the idea that he was costing us a bunch of games is hyperbole.

Yeah, I'd argue he actually WON them a few games.

[SleepingHero]

@kevingraysports

Mavericks are 26-22 after 48 games and currently 8th in the West

Dallas’ record after 48 games last season:

26-22 and they were 8th in the West

The Mavs are in the exact same spot as they were last year when they went to the NBA Finals…#MFFL

[Smitty]

#Mavs guard Dante Exum is one step closer to making his season debut. He has been upgraded to questionable for tomorrow's game against the #Pistons.

Dwight Powell (hip strain) remains out.

[SleepingHero]

@townbrad
Shocker that the Mavericks, six months removed from making the NBA Finals, failed to land an All-Star for the first time since 2018.

Perfectly understandable in Doncic's case, but in the fan/media voting Doncic was third among West guards and Kyrie Irving was fifth.

[Mavs2021]

@townbrad
Shocker that the Mavericks, six months removed from making the NBA Finals, failed to land an All-Star for the first time since 2018.

Perfectly understandable in Doncic's case, but in the fan/media voting Doncic was third among West guards and Kyrie Irving was fifth.

Good for the Mavs. Kyrie gets rest and, while Luka does not give a flying f*** about the game itself, I think and hope he feels insulted to not be voted in.

[Chicagojk]

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Mavs PR
@MavsPR
The Dallas Mavericks announced today that Mavericks forward/center Maxi Kleber has undergone surgery to repair a right foot fracture. Kleber sustained the injury in the game against Boston on Jan. 25.

Further medical updates on Kleber’s status will be provided as appropriate

[Chicagojk]

I think the Mavs will be aggressive to upgrade maxi. Even if it a lateral move. Maxi and a few seconds will get someone of maxi level who may be a little more dependable as a backup 4.

[Reunion Mav]

I think the Mavs will be aggressive to upgrade maxi.  Even if it a lateral move.  Maxi and a few seconds will get someone of maxi level who may be a little more dependable as a backup 4.

Show prospective trade partners his playoff hot streaks and defensive mobility. Some may be quite enamored. Don’t give this guy away though. His next blistering streak could win us a playoff series.

[mvossman]

Show prospective trade partners his playoff hot streaks and defensive mobility. Some may be quite enamored. Don’t give this guy away though. His next blistering streak could win us a playoff series.

If we trade him at the TDL it will be a crappy team looking at the long term.  In that case Maxi will be nothing more than eating a contract to generate an asset (or to get off a longer term contract).

[Chicagojk]

Show prospective trade partners his playoff hot streaks and defensive mobility. Some may be quite enamored. Don’t give this guy away though. His next blistering streak could win us a playoff series.

I just don't think that is in the cards.  He is going to be viewed as an expiring this summer.  Nothing more.  Unfortunately.   I think he has always been more valuable to the Mavs than other teams.  I am just not srue we can say that any longer.

[Mavs2021]

I honestly think we might have seen the last of Maxi on an NBA court. With his 15 year long injury journey and how he looked before breaking his foot, I don´t see it.

[KillerLeft]

I honestly think we might have seen the last of Maxi on an NBA court. With his 15 year long injury journey and how he looked before breaking his foot, I don´t see it.

Sadly, this is a possibility, I agree.

[WillE]

I honestly think we might have seen the last of Maxi on an NBA court. With his 15 year long injury journey and how he looked before breaking his foot, I don´t see it.

All you guys who think broken bones is the end are just overreacting.

Broken bones are one of, if not the best injury to have if you are already injured. Because they heal relatively quickly and, in principle, leave no restrictions etc. Injuries to muscles, ligaments or even tendons cannot make the same claim.
Anyone who has ever torn their Achilles tendon, for example, envies anyone who has only broken bones. Even if the same fracture happens twice in a row. Even three times...

Broken bones aren't nice, but they're not really bad either and certainly not the end of the world. So Maxi will definitely come back.

[KillerLeft]

All you guys who think broken bones is the end are just overreacting.

Broken bones are one of, if not the best injury to have if you are already injured. Because they heal relatively quickly and, in principle, leave no restrictions etc. Injuries to muscles, ligaments or even tendons cannot make the same claim.
Anyone who has ever torn their Achilles tendon, for example, envies anyone who has only broken bones. Even if the same fracture happens twice in a row. Even three times...

Broken bones aren't nice, but they're not really bad either and certainly not the end of the world. So Maxi will definitely come back.

Well, nobody is a bigger Kleber fan than me, but it just seems like he's had so much to deal with over the past few years it might be insurmountable. He hasn't really had time to get right from the toe surgery, which I believe was a couple of years ago. It's not like I believe he's not going to be able to walk soon or anything like that, it's just there are a finite amount of jobs in the NBA and new people showing up each year wanting them. At some point, the Mavs will give up on him. Unfortunately, his recent injury history doesn't leave much to entice the next team. This IS kind of how many careers die.

[Chicagojk]

Hollinger has an article in the athletic saying Gafford could be the leagues most underrated player.

[Chicagojk]

Hollinger has an article in the athletic saying Gafford could be the leagues most underrated player.

Daniel Gafford has been good all year, but if you haven’t been paying attention to the Luka Dončić-less Mavs lately, he’s been monstrous since mid-January. In the last two weeks, he’s had multiple video-game stat lines: 9-of-9 with 22 points and 12 rebounds; 12-of-15 with 31 points, 15 rebounds and seven blocks; and 12-of-13 with 27 points and 12 rebounds, for example.

The tape backs up the quality of play: Gafford is an athletic, physical force who combines it with strength, toughness, Velcro hands and a great motor. He might be the league’s most underrated player. Look at him destroy New Orleans’ poor Yves Missi here for an offensive board and putback:

Gafford has 91 dunks on the season, just under two per game, and that’s with Dončić, his primary lob supplier missing most of the season. Defensively, it’s a similar story. Gafford’s rim protection has been an underrated factor, especially as the Mavs weather injuries to other big men.

For the season, Gafford’s 25.7 PER ranks sixth in the entire league — yes, really — because of his dominance inside. He’s fourth in offensive rebound rate and third in block rate, and his shooting percentage isn’t just feasting on dunks: He’s shown surprising touch around the lane and has made 62.4 percent even from 3 to 10 feet.