It’s been two weeks and fans are still baffled at the Dallas Mavericks’ decision to move on from franchise superstar Luka Doncic. The path forward hasn’t gotten any easier for the Mavs, either, as several key members of the team, including newest acquisition Anthony Davis, have been sidelined indefinitely by injury.
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Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce lamented Dallas’ fall from grace, underlining how the franchise was in shambles from top to bottom. Garnett mentioned how the fans booed the team owner when he sat down in his seat at a recent game.
The decision was exclusively made by powerful individuals in the organization, so the anger from fans has mostly been directed at the Mavs’ front office.
Paul Pierce highlighted how clashing egos led to the franchise allowing their centerpiece to be traded away. “It’s some egos that got involved in [the Luka trade],” the Celtics legend said on KG Certified. “Like you traded the whole future, the whole face, the whole city was on his back and you just said, ‘We don’t need you.'”
Once the trade was announced, the Mavs were firm in their stance that the franchise was building for the present. But now, with Davis sidelined for an unknown period, Dallas will be in danger of missing the postseason altogether. KG still believes in the Mavs playoff chances, but Pierce emphasized how little time there is remaining in the season.
Dallas was already dealing with Doncic’s injury before the trade, but now that he’s in Los Angeles, there won’t be anyone to come save the injury-riddled Mavs.
Injuries continue to add up for the directionless Mavericks
While the injury to Davis alone was enough to send the team into a tailspin, other key members of Dallas’ frontcourt have also been dealing with long-term ailments.
Dereck Lively II has already been sidelined for weeks, but the team lost its other key center when Daniel Gafford suffered an MCL sprain on February 10. PJ Washington has also missed a handful of games, which has forced the Mavs to play small ball for extended periods of time.
Dallas has been able to overcome their sudden absences, winning four of their last five games, but it will be hard to sustain that pace for the last third of the season.
With nearly all of their frontcourt lost for an extended time, it will be an uphill battle for the Mavericks to hold on to a play-in spot in the brutal Western Conference.
