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USA Today via Reuters

USA Today via Reuters

After an exhilarating Christmas Day victory over the Phoenix Suns, the Dallas Mavericks are gearing up for a crucial clash against the Cleveland Cavaliers at the American Airlines Center. The excitement, however, is tinged with uncertainty as the Mavericks’ star player, Luka Doncic, finds himself on the NBA injury report.

After a record 50-point night, every fan wonders: Will Luka Doncic take the floor tonight against the Cavaliers?

The Mavs could face the Cavs without their star Luka Doncic

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Per the injury report shared by the Dallas Mavericks’ beat writer Grant Afseth, the 24-year-old is questionable for the Wednesday night matchup due to left quad soreness.

Doncic has been on a roll and apart from squaring the Suns on Christmas Day, Luka Doncic‘s feat carved a place for himself in NBA history. The Slovenian sensation passed the 10,000-point mark and so became the seventh fastest player ever to hit this milestone.

Doncic has played in 28 games so far this season and is averaging 33.5 points, 8.5 rebounds, 9.4 assists, and 1.4 steals per contest while shooting 48.9% from the field and 38.7% from the three-point range.

 

With him joining Kyrie Irving, Josh Green, and others on the sidelines, this could be a huge dent in the Mavs’ chances of taking home the victory.

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If their star player isn’t going to be able to play, the Mavericks will need a joint effort from guys like Dereck Lively, and Dante Exum if they hope to take down the Cavaliers. However, Dallas is not the only team short-handed tonight as Cleveland also faces similar problems due to injuries to its key players: Darius Garland and Ty Jerome are out while Evan Mobley is listed as questionable.

Predictions for the matchup

The Mavs are 18-12 in their first 30 games, which has them as the fifth seed in the Western Conference. They are 6-4 over their last ten games. The game will be a real test for the Dallas Mavericks to see if they can keep rolling and stretch their win streak to three games. Most recently, the Mavs beat Kevin Durant and the Phoenix Suns by a score of 128-114. Doncic is an important cornerstone for the team along with Irving and with both of them out, it will be interesting to see the kind of strategy the team will come up with to ensure a win.

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Statistically, the Mavs have a higher chance of winning with 52.3% against Cleveland’s 47.7% according to ESPN Analytics. But if we go by their history, the Cavs have won their last two match-ups in the previous season. At the end of the day, it is not the numbers but the actual effort from the players that decides the outcome. As we eagerly await the results, keep watching this space as we update you on all the latest news.!

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