The Dallas Mavericks will face the Toronto Raptors on Saturday without various key rotation players, including Naji Marshall (illness), Jaden Hardy (right ankle sprain), Maxi Kleber (illness), and Danté Exum (right wrist surgery).
While most of the Mavericks’ injured players are not new information, there is a significant development about Marshall. He will miss his fourth consecutive game but appears to be trending toward returning soon.
One of my on-site observations included Marshall jogging to the visitors’ weight room at Scotiabank Arena in workout gear. As DallasHoopsJournal.com has mentioned a few times, a player sometimes carries an illness designation even when the current focus is on conditioning to return to competition. He then took the court to go through a lengthy pre-game workout.
The Mavericks are eager to regain Marshall, whenever that may be. He’s having a highly productive season, averaging 11.6 points, 3.4 rebounds, and 2.4 assists in 20 games. He recently had a career-best streak of scoring 20 or more points in four consecutive games. His presence will be instrumental in the Mavericks’ efforts to push forward through the middle of the regular season.
Toronto had three players questionable to play but upgraded each of them to available, including Jakob Poeltl (illness), Kelly Olynyk (lumbar strain), and Davion Mitchell (right hip stiffness). However, they will play without Bruce Brown (return to competition conditioning) and Immanuel Quickley (left partial UCL tear).
After facing the Raptors, the Mavericks do not return to action until Tuesday, when they face the Oklahoma City Thunder in the NBA Cup Quarterfinal at Paycom Center.
