Brandon Williams did not practice on Friday and remains in concussion protocol ahead of the Dallas Mavericks‘ home game against the Los Angeles Clippers on Saturday night, coach Jason Kidd confirmed.
Williams was limited to riding a stationary bike and shooting during Friday’s session. Kidd offered no timetable for his return.
“B. Will is in concussion protocol,” Kidd said. “He’s riding the bike and shooting. Those two things.”
During the open viewing portion of practice, Williams was on the court doing spot shooting alongside Dwight Powell and appeared to be moving well. He shot the ball cleanly throughout the session.
Brandon Williams Has Been One of the Dallas Mavericks’ Most Reliable Bench Contributors
Williams played just five minutes in Monday’s game at New Orleans before exiting and did not score. He has not played since. Caleb Martin also did not practice on Friday due to his right plantar fascia injury. Both sat out Wednesday’s 135-120 loss to the Atlanta Hawks.
The absence matters. Williams has been one of Dallas’s more consistent contributors this season, averaging 12.8 points, 2.9 rebounds, and 3.8 assists in 60 games while shooting 47.2% from the field and 78.8% from the free-throw line. His 22 minutes per game off the bench have given the Mavericks a reliable ball-handler in the second unit, and replacing that production has not been straightforward.
Against Atlanta, Dallas staggered Naji Marshall‘s minutes to give the second unit a capable lead guard in Williams’s absence. The Mavericks have otherwise leaned on Ryan Nembhard and Marshall in the backcourt alongside Cooper Flagg in the starting lineup, but depth behind them gets thin quickly without Williams available.
The team has gone 4-21 since a four-game winning streak in January and has not won at home since defeating the Golden State Warriors on Jan. 22, so every available piece matters as the season winds down.
Dallas Mavericks Face Kawhi Leonard, Los Angeles Clippers on Saturday
Saturday’s game against the Clippers presents its own challenges. Kidd noted that Kawhi Leonard is playing at a high level and identified ball security and paint protection as the primary areas of emphasis heading into the game.
“When Kawhi gets going, it’s very hard to stop him,” Kidd said. “They’re very good in transition, very good defensively with their length. So we’ve got to be able to move the ball and take care of it tomorrow.”
Williams’s status for Saturday is uncertain. The NBA’s concussion protocol does not operate on a fixed timeline, and players must complete a multi-step return-to-play process before being cleared for game action. Until he does, Dallas will continue managing its backcourt depth on the fly.
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