Dallas Mavericks star Luka Dončić left Wednesday’s 105-99 loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves due to a left calf injury. It will now be at least a month before he returns.
Dončić was making an elbow move in the second quarter of the Christmas Day game at the American Airlines Center when he suddenly drove up and passed the ball. He then immediately started limping and seemed distraught as the play went the other way.
Dončić eventually walked off the field and into the locker room under his own power, but he limped considerably as he did so.
The Mavericks ruled Dončić out at halftime due to a left calf injury. No further details are known yet, although he was dealing with a calf injury that he first suffered during pre-season. Dončić returned from that injury in time to start the regular season.
A day later, ESPN’s Shams Charania reported that Dončić will be re-evaluated in a month after suffering a left calf strain.
Dončić finished the game with 14 points and five rebounds in 16 minutes. He shot 5-of-9 from the field and 3-of-5 from beyond the arc. The 25-year-old entered this season averaging just under 29 points, 8.5 rebounds and 8.1 assists per game.
The Timberwolves took the lead in the second quarter and took a 17-point lead into the break. They also held Dallas to just 16 points in that period, then pushed their lead to 26 points in the third quarter. However, Dallas opened the final period trailing 31-11 and made it a one-possession game in the final minute. However, that push came too late. Minnesota held on, thanks to a pair of huge buckets from Anthony Edwards, to take the six-point win.
Edwards led the Timberwolves with 26 points and eight rebounds in the win, moving them to 15-14 on the season. Julius Randle finished just short of a triple-double with 23 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists, and Rudy Gobert had 14 points and 10 rebounds.
Kyrie Irving led Dallas in Dončić’s absence. He dropped 39 points and shot 14 of 27 from the field in the loss. Klay Thompson scored twelve points on four three-pointers. The Mavericks will take on the Phoenix Suns next Friday, who begin a four-game road trip.
