In the opening minute of the Mavericks’ eventual loss to the Clippers Saturday night, Luka Doncic reached with his left hand to try and strip James Harden of the ball on a drive, and Doncic’s left hand hit Harden’s knee, bending the thumb at an awkward angle.
Doncic was clearly in pain but stayed on the court, scoring 20 points with four assists but not looking like himself in the Mavericks 107-88 loss to the Clippers. After the game Doncic entered his media availability with a wrap on his left hand. When asked he said it wasn’t broken, but further evaluation was coming. Here’s Doncic’s quote via Brad Townsend of the Dallas Morning News.
“I don’t think it’s broken,” Doncic said. “The X-rays didn’t indicate that it’s broken, but we’ll see further tomorrow in Dallas.”
That likely means an MRI. A source told Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN that Doncic’s
hand was “good.”
Considering the reports and that Doncic played out the game, it’s all a good sign for Dallas. Any injury to Doncic would be a huge setback for the Mavericks, Doncic is playing at an MVP level this season averaging 30.5 points, 7.9 rebounds and 7.8 assists a game, while shooting 39.4% from 3 (he was 1-of-8 from beyond the arc against the Clippers, possibly due to the thumb).
The Mavericks were without starting center Dereck Lively for the game due to a back contusion suffered a couple of nights earlier against the Lakers and his presence was missed in the paint during this game.