Dallas Mavericks point guard J.J. Barea has been medically cleared for training camp on Oct. 1 after suffering a ruptured Achilles back in January:
JJ Barea started doing 5-on-5 work recently. He tells me he’s been medically cleared for the start of training camp Oct. 1. Full go? “That’s the plan.”
— Brad Townsend (@townbrad) September 15, 2019
The veteran from Puerto Rico elected not to play for the national team during the 2019 FIBA World Cup, stating that he did not want to push the recovery timetable and risk re-injuring the ruptured tendon.
Barea has quietly been one of the more productive bench players in the league over the course of the last few seasons. In 38 games last season, Barea averaged 10.9 points and 5.6 assists in just under 20 minutes per contest. He has averaged at least 10.9 points and 5.5 assists in each of the last three seasons, though injuries have continued to plague the latter part of his career.
Although the Mavericks lamented the loss of the 13-year veteran, Barea's absence allowed Dallas to give even more playing time to Jalen Brunson, who excelled as the starting point guard.
The Mavs had thought that they had agreed to a deal that would have brought Goran Dragic to town, but they misunderstood the terms of the deal with the Miami Heat and pulled out of negotiations.
Dallas is hoping to make improvements this season after trading for Kristaps Porzingis at the February trade deadline. With Porzngis and second-year wing Luka Doncic leading the way, the Mavericks have the potential to be one of the higher scoring teams in the NBA.
Barea's return only serves to bolster the team with scoring and playmaking off the bench, an area that was sorely lacking for Dallas last season.
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