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Dallas Mavericks star Luka Doncic has been listed as questionable for Sunday's Game 4 against the Los Angeles Clippers due to a neck injury, but head coach Rick Carlisle is not too worried about it.
In his talk with reporters on Saturday–just over an hour after the Mavs' injury report was released–Carlisle expressed his optimism that the Mavs superstar will not miss the game despite the latest debacle.
"I think he's going to play," Carlisle says of Doncic, "but we'll see how he feels tomorrow." Says he was pleasantly surprised to see Kleber is probable. A good sign.
— Brad Townsend (@townbrad) May 29, 2021
Luka Doncic has been diagnosed with a cervical strain, which he suffered during their Game 3 loss to the Clippers. After the said contest, the Slovenian admitted to reporters that he had this “weird” feeling in his neck that eventually spread to his left shoulder–which was the reason why he was spotted getting treatment in that area during the second half.
While it didn't look like the issue affected his game at all, as he finished with 44 points on Friday in the losing effort, it remains a cause for concern for the Mavs. After all, Luka has been carrying them offensively in the playoffs so far, and it just seems an impossible task facing LA without their one true superstar.
Should Luka be able to play on Sunday, though, Rick Carlisle and Co. should do their best not to overwork Doncic. Kristaps Porzingis and Tim Hardaway Jr. need to step up as well and be more aggressive on offense if they want to keep Dallas in the lead in the series.
The Mavs still own a 2-1 advantage over the Clippers, but they must win Game 4 and head back to Los Angeles for a chance to close it early and give Doncic some much-needed rest.
