Dallas Mavericks star Luka Doncic has been ruled out for the team's matchup against the Minnesota Timberwolves on Sunday afternoon, per Chris Hine of the Minneapolis Star Tribune:

Doncic has been nursing a thumb injury and his status has been day-to-day for the past few games. He was questionable to play in Friday's game against the Miami Heat, but ultimately suited up. There is no indication the injury is serious, but Doncic will still sit as the Mavs square off against the Timberwolves, currently 14th in the Western Conference.

Luka has been productive since the All-Star break, but the thumb injury seems to have been taking a toll on his efficiency. He was just 4-of-23 from beyond the arc in the last three games.

The Mavs have fallen to the No. 7 seed in the West, but they have every right to exert caution especially with respect to Doncic. Dallas are already without Dwight Powell for the remainder of the season, and Jalen Brunson has a torn labrum. The team will reassess Brunson after the current road trip.

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For his part, Doncic will now have missed 11 games on the season. The Mavericks cannot afford to push the young star given they are still jostling for playoff position and almost certainly need him in the rotation to make any noise down the stretch.

The 21-year-old has been superb in his sophomore season, averaging 28.6 points, 9.4 rebounds and 8.8 assists while ranking seventh in value over replacement player (VORP), per Basketball Reference.

Dallas will give Doncic a day off to allow him to recover, though they hope he gets back to full strength in short order.