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The Dallas Mavericks will be on the road to face the Houston Rockets on Friday; however, they will be without Luka Doncic. According to Marc Stein, Doncic will miss the matchup with a quadriceps injury. It will just be the second game that he misses this season. Doncic missed his first game in late November for personal reasons, which was later disclosed as the birth of his child.
Doncic has been prolific so far this season. He is averaging season-high in points (32.7) and assists (9.1). The Mavericks have started the season 16-11 and are sixth in the Western Conference. However, they have lost two in a row and will have a task in hand against a young Rockets team who will look to end its three-game skid.
What happened to Luka Doncic?
The exact nature of Doncic’s injury or when he sustained it isn’t clear at the moment. It could very well be a rest night for the Slovenian guard as the Mavericks also play Saturday against the San Antonio Spurs.
Luka Doncic has carried a heavy workload throughout December. In nine games, he has averaged 40.4 minutes and a 35% usage rate. On Wednesday night’s 120-111 loss against the LA Clippers, Doncic had 28 points, 10 assists and 10 rebounds in 44 minutes.
Luka Doncic's stats vs Houston Rockets
The Mavericks superstar has played the Houston Rockets 15 times so far in his career, averaging 30.2 points, 10.4 rebounds, 7.8 assists and 1.3 steals. Dallas is 10-5 in those games. It’s fair to assume that the Mavericks will miss the services of their star player. It could prove to be a tough matchup, as Dallas has several other players on its injury report.
Dallas Mavericks’ injury report for Houston Rockets matchup
The Dallas Mavericks will be without seven key players Friday.
As previously mentioned, Doncic is ruled out with a quadriceps injury. His backcourt partner, Kyrie Irving, is out with a heel injury, too. Dereck Lively II (ankle), Maxi Kleber (toe), Dante Exum (lower leg contusion) and Josh Green (right elbow sprain) are out as well. Meanwhile, Seth Curry is designated as day-to-day with back spasms.
Dallas coach Jason Kidd will face a challenge in selecting his starting 5 with all the injury concerns. He could start Tim Hardaway Jr., Jaden Hardy, Derrick Jones Jr., Grant Williams and Markieff Morris.
