On Saturday, the Dallas Mavericks and Miami Heat will meet at Miami-Dade Arena. The game will start at 7:30 p.m. ET.
Injury Update for Dallas Mavericks and Miami Heat
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The Dallas Mavericks
The Miami Heat will host the Dallas Mavericks, with both clubs hoping to break winless streaks that have hampered their chances of making the playoffs.
The Dallas Mavericks (37-40) endured its own offensive woes Wednesday, particularly in a 17-point fourth quarter to conclude the Mavericks’ 116-108 loss at Philadelphia.
Kyrie Irving had 23 points and Luka Doncic scored 24. Dallas head coach Jason Kidd acknowledged in his postgame news conference that his club is still getting used to having an All-Star tandem in the backcourt.
“That’s something we got to figure out on the run,” Kidd said. “Luka’s dominated the first quarter. We’re trying not to affect that. At the same time, what we’ve found out with (Irving) is that (Irving) is not always about scoring. He can set a screen and get a teammate a shot and we’re trying to lean into that a little more, use him as a screener to create easy looks for other guys.”
Doncic keeps pushing the Mavericks into the playoffs. He is averaging 30.6 points, 9.4 assists, 9.2 rebounds, and 3.8 threes in his last five games since returning from a thigh strain.
Dallas’ recent losing skid has put it far behind Oklahoma City in the postseason chase. Can the Mavericks make a playoff push in their final five games of the regular season?
Dallas is now 11th in the West, one game behind Oklahoma City for the last play-in spot in the West before the Thunder go to Indiana on Friday. Before Utah’s game with Boston on Friday, the Mavericks had a slim half-game lead over the 12th-placed Jazz.
| PLAYER | INJURY |
STATUS
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| Frank Ntilikina | Knee |
Game Time Decision
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The Miami Heat
Miami (40-37) lost 101-92 in New York on Wednesday, their third straight defeat. With the Nets playing the eighth-place Atlanta Hawks on Friday night, the loss put Miami 1.5 games behind Brooklyn for the sixth and last assured playoff slot in the Eastern Conference.
In the final 35 minutes of the loss to the Knicks, Jimmy Butler scored 12 points (5-10 FG, 2-2 FT) and added three boards and six dimes.
Butler’s return to action wasn’t marked by inefficiency, but rather by a lack of shot attempts and a low number of free throw attempts for him since February 2.
Before Wednesday, he had scored in double figures in 22 consecutive games, and his season averages of 24.8 points, 6.0 rebounds, 5.5 assists, and 1.8 steals-plus-blocks suggest that he will have stronger nights as the regular season winds down.
| PLAYER | INJURY |
STATUS
|
| Bam Adebayo | Hip |
Game Time Decision
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| Nikola Jovic | Back |
Expected to be out until at least Apr 4
|
| Kyle Lowry | Rest |
Game Time Decision
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