Dallas Mavericks All-Star Dirk Nowitzki hasn't played a single game this season due to an ankle injury. However, it sounds like the Mavs legend may be able to return to the court in roughly three weeks, according to a report from Shams Charania of The Athletic.
Franchise icon Dirk Nowitzki is targeting to make his season debut in approximately three weeks, league sources said.
Der große Deutsche (The Big German), as Nowitzki is affectionately known, went through surgery in April for impingement in his ankle caused by bone spurs. Pain in that region is certainly an issue when it comes to running, jumping and lateral movement. The procedure was relatively minor, and he has been in rehab since.
“It's going to be multiple weeks, I can tell you that,” Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle told ESPN in mid-October. “But there's no real soft or hard date [for Nowitzki's return] at this point. He is doing better but has not done any significant court work. His rehab work is ongoing.”
According to ESPN, Nowitzki was nearly recovered, but he developed some soreness during a pickup game before training camp started.
Nowitzki, now 40 years of age, made 77 appearances with the Mavs last season (all starts), racking up averages of 12.0 points on 45.6 percent shooting from the field (40.9 percent from beyond the arc), 5.7 rebounds and 1.6 assists in 24.7 minutes per outing.
Without a doubt, Nowitzki will go down as one of the greatest players the NBA has ever known. His signature shot — a one-legged fallaway jumper — is still imitated to this day. Hopefully, he can get back on the floor sooner rather than later.
The Mavs will be back in action on Wednesday night, when they'll travel to Utah for a matchup against the Jazz.
Follow Us
Subscribe