DALLAS – To the credit of Kristaps Porzingis, he truly does try to play through injuries. But that doesn’t mean he always can, and now the Dallas Mavericks big man will miss this Monday night game against the visiting Utah Jazz due to a sprained right wrist – and he could miss multiple games due to a problem that he has recently been trying to play through.
“It may have happened in a game back in January,” coach Rick Carlisle said. “We’re not 100-percent sure, but it’s bothered him since then. Look, he’s a tough guy. He doesn’t miss practices. He wants to play all the time.”
Carlisle, as is his habit, did not set a timetable for the return of the 25-year-old 7-3 Latvian standout. But it’s been suggested that this particular ailment will take a bit of time to heal … and it will likely mean that while Porzingis will miss his 18th game of the year on Monday (out of the Mavs’ 49 outings this season), there will be more misses to come.
KP missed nine games to begin the season while still recovering from offseason knee surgery. The other sit-outs have come due to load management with the knee, and then a few missed games due to back soreness.
Ultimately, the Luka Doncic-led Mavs – presently trying to climb from the No. 7 slot in the West – are trying to climb higher and toward playoff success. They’ll need a healthy Porzingis to accomplish the latter. In the meantime, his wrist problem will make it harder to accomplish the former.
READ MORE: GAMEDAY: Doncic, Confident Mavs Seek Revenge vs. Jazz
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