Anthony Davis

Windhorst/Bontemps’ Latest: Mavs, Lakers, Warriors, Blazers

March 7th, 2025 at 8:27pm CST by Luke Adams

Back in 2023, the Mavericks acquired Kyrie Irving in a trade-deadline blockbuster, missed the postseason, then used a lottery pick that June to draft Dereck Lively, who played a major role on the team that made the NBA Finals in 2024. An injury-plagued Mavs team appears headed for a repeat of their 2023 finish this spring and may need to replicate their ’23 draft lottery success this offseason in order to put themselves in position to bounce back in 2025/26, as Brian Windhorst and Tim Bontemps write for ESPN.com (Insider link).

“When you have a setback like they’ve suffered, you have to identify what you can control and focus on improvement there,” a league executive told Windhorst. “They don’t control their first-round pick from 2027 to 2030, and this is a good draft.”

While Bontemps advocated on a recent Hoop Collective podcast for the Mavericks to trade Anthony Davis this summer, there’s no indication the organization will consider taking a step back by exploring that possibility.

One league executive told Bontemps that the Mavs are “doubling down” on their current group, while another predicted that the team will sign Irving to a long-term contract this summer even as he recovers from an ACL tear. That exec suggested the deal could start below Irving’s $43MM player option for 2025/26 in order to give the club some extra cap flexibility next season.

As for the Mavs’ outlook for the rest of this season? There’s not much optimism on that front from outside observers, given how thoroughly the roster has been decimated by health issues.

“Dallas is just hopeless right now,” one scout told ESPN. “There’s just no scoring ability without Kyrie. There’s just not enough talent with all these injuries.”

Here’s more from Windhorst and Bontemps:

Within a discussion about whether or not the Lakers‘ recent defensive performance is sustainable, Windhorst notes that the Luka Doncic trade has had an added benefit in Los Angeles beyond the addition of the 25-year-old superstar. “They didn’t just trade for Luka,” one league executive said. “They also traded for a more engaged LeBron (James).” Head coach J.J. Redick told reporters last week that James has been playing at an All-Defensive level as of late.
Although Jimmy Butler‘s numbers with Golden State have been modest – his .451 FG% and .143 3PT% are well below his career rates – the Warriors have a +13.5 net rating during his 341 minutes so far and he has transformed the team into a far more dangerous postseason opponent. “No one will want to play them in the playoffs,” one scout told Bontemps. “Jimmy with fresh legs and motivation … honeymoon-phase Jimmy is a motherf—er. … He’s not a franchise player in that he doesn’t do it in the regular season, but when it comes to the playoffs, he’s a franchise player. He’s a superstar when you need to be winning.”
Rival executives and scouts have been impressed by the Trail Blazers, who have won 15 of their last 22 games and remain in the postseason hunt, just four games back of No. 10 Dallas. Head coach Chauncey Billups has earned praise for how he has handled the rotation. “They have their guys in the right roles now,” one Eastern Conference scout told Bontemps. “It’s not that they don’t believe in [Shaedon] Sharpe now that he’s their scorer off the bench, but that’s the best role for him right now with this current team. … You go up and down the roster, and specifically with the young guys, that’s helped them a lot.”

Mavericks Issue Updates On Davis, Lively, Gafford

March 7th, 2025 at 2:35pm CST by Rory Maher

The Mavericks provided updates on a trio of injured big men on Friday, announcing in a press release that Anthony Davis has been making daily improvements and has been cleared for “more dynamic on-court movements.”

The star forward/center has missed the past 10 games with a left adductor strain, with a recent report suggesting that Davis might miss the rest of the season with the injury.

According to the Mavericks, Davis will be evaluated on a weekly basis going forward. That means he’s out at least four more games, and it certainly doesn’t sound like his return is imminent.

Second-year center Dereck Lively, who is recovering from a right ankle stress fracture, has progressed to individual on-court work. He will also be evaluated weekly. The 21-year-old has been out since January 14, having missed the past 23 games.

Finally, the Mavs issued a vague update on center Daniel Gafford. According to the team, while Gafford is “showing progress,” he’ll be sidelined for at least two more weeks, which is when he’ll be reexamined.

Gafford, who is expected to explore an extension with Dallas in the offseason, has been sidelined since February 10 due to a right knee sprain. It was reported that he suffered a Grade 3 MCL sprain.

It has been a rough go of late for the Mavericks, who recently lost star guard Kyrie Irving to a season-ending ACL tear in his left knee. Dallas has lost five of its past six games and only had eight players active for Wednesday’s contest in Milwaukee due to the spate of injuries.

The team has an open spot on its 15-man roster but can’t fill it until April 10 due to its proximity to a hard cap.

Mark Cuban On Luka Doncic Trade: “Get A Better Deal”

March 7th, 2025 at 9:49am CST by Rory Maher

In an exclusive interview with WFFA’s Jonah Javad on Thursday evening (YouTube link), former Mavericks majority owner — and current minority stakeholder — Mark Cuban broke his silence about the shocking decision to trade Luka Doncic to the Lakers.

The full deal saw the Mavericks send Doncic, Markieff Morris and Maxi Kleber to the Lakers, with the Mavericks acquiring Anthony Davis, Max Christie and the Lakers’ 2029 first-round pick. Utah was also involved, receiving a couple of second-round picks (one from L.A., one from Dallas) for taking on the salary of Jalen Hood-Schifino, who was later waived (he is now on a two-way deal with Philadelphia).

Was Cuban upset about the trade?

“Yeah, of course. … If the Mavs are going to trade Luka, that’s one thing. Just get a better deal. … I still firmly believe if we had gotten four unprotected number ones and Anthony Davis and Max Christie, this would be a different conversation.”

Would he have made the trade?

“I’m not going to go there. It doesn’t even matter.”

Cuban confirmed he did not have advanced knowledge of the deal, which has been previously reported.

“I knew five minutes at the most before (it was reported). … From a basketball perspective, you know, I hear about it after the fact, I don’t hear about anything beforehand.”

Is it difficult for him to be out of the loop when he was used to being actively involved in front office decisions?

“Yeah, there are parts that aren’t fun, obviously. Especially this month, or last month. But, you know, they paid for that right.”

Does he regret selling his majority stake in the Mavs?

“Sometimes I get mad (and think) ‘I would have done this.’ But, not really. … I didn’t want my kids to end up in this exact position, at some level, if they made a mistake. Imagine if I didn’t [sell], and my kids had taken over and they made a mistake like this.”

On the team’s struggle to communicate with fans in the aftermath of the trade:

“I think the biggest challenge that the Mavs have right now is there’s nobody who’s really outgoing to communicate. It’s not so much what you do, it’s how you communicate why you do what you do — and that’s their challenge without me in front.”

Has he been consulted by GM Nico Harrison or governor Patrick Dumont since the trade was completed?

“I have not talked to Nico about it. I said hi to Nico twice after the trade.”

The full video interview can be found here, while more transcript highlights can be found on WFFA’s website.

Lakers Notes: Doncic, LeBron, Reaves, Buss, Davis

March 5th, 2025 at 9:53pm CST by Arthur Hill

Luka Doncic‘s elite play-making skills can take time to get used to, writes Khobi Price of The Orange County Register. Doncic has brought a new dynamic to the Lakers‘ offense since being acquired from Dallas last month, but it took a while for his new teammates to adjust to the unexpected passes he sometimes delivers.

“There’s a non-cadence to the way Luka plays, if that makes sense,” coach J.J. Redick explained. “A lot of offensive players have pre-programmed reads. He just does [expletive] that you’re like, ‘What, why did you do that?’ There was a blitz against our bench in the second half. Could have made one read, could have made another read, made the read that I would have picked last and we ended up getting the layup on it.”

The Lakers have scored 122.8 points per 100 possessions over their last three games as the team gets more comfortable with Doncic in charge of the offense. The biggest beneficiary has been LeBron James, who has averaged a team-high 27.2 PPG in the 10 games he has played alongside Doncic.

“In order for us to be the team ultimately we need to be, the ball needs to be in Luka’s hands,” James said. “And then when Luka sits down, the ball can be in my hands or be (Austin Reaves’) hands when he gets back. But I’m very comfortable playing off the ball and finding my spots, running the floor, getting the outlet pass from Luka, being on the backside of the defense if he’s either being blitzed in pick-and-rolls or switched in pick-and-rolls. He attracts so many eyes and bodies. I’ve been very blessed to be able to be adaptable to whatever team I’ve been on throughout my career, to be able to change. And this is another instance and I’m looking forward to that.”

There’s more on the Lakers:

James reached another career milestone Tuesday night, becoming the first player in league history to score 50,000 combined points in the regular season and playoffs, per Dave McMenamin of ESPN. James accomplished the feat on his first shot of the night and went on to score 34 points in a victory over New Orleans. “It’s a hell of a lot of points, and I’m super blessed to be able to put that many points up in the best league in the world with the best players in the world over my career,” James said in a post-game interview with Spectrum SportsNet. “It’s pretty special.”
Reaves is listed as probable for Thursday’s matchup with New York after missing the last two games with a right calf strain, McMenamin tweets. After leaving Friday’s game early due to the injury, Reaves underwent an MRI on Saturday that didn’t reveal any serious damage.
In a discussion of the Doncic trade during an NPR interview, Lakers owner Jeanie Buss referenced Anthony Davis‘ distaste for playing center and the team’s recent playoff frustrations as reasons for the deal. “We gave up a lot to get Luka Doncic. We’re happy we have him,” Buss said. “We have lost the last three years in a row to the Denver Nuggets in the playoffs, and we really didn’t have anything that was going to look different going into the playoffs again. Anthony Davis was complaining about where he was being played and he wasn’t happy. So I think this was a positive for both teams. They got what they were looking for; we got what we were looking for. And I didn’t realize it was going to be international news like it was, but that’s the power of the Laker brand and its ability to draw big names who want to write their own chapter in Lakers history.”

Mavs Notes: Hardy, Davis, Martin, Jones, Jensen

March 4th, 2025 at 1:03pm CST by Luke Adams

The Mavericks‘ injury report went from bad to worse on Tuesday when word broke that Kyrie Irving has sustained a torn ACL in his left knee and will miss the rest of the 2024/25 season. That’s not the only concerning injury news that has come out of Dallas today.

According to NBA insider Chris Haynes (Twitter link), the Mavs are expecting to be without reserve guard Jaden Hardy for “a period of time” after he sprained his right ankle in Monday’s loss to Sacramento. That update is pretty vague, but it suggests that Hardy’s injury is more than just a day-to-day issue.

Meanwhile, we’re still a couple days away from the date when Anthony Davis (adductor strain) is due to be reevaluated, but Shams Charania of ESPN offered an ominous update during an appearance on The Pat McAfee Show on Tuesday, suggesting that there are some “very hard conversations” on tap for Davis and his representatives (Twitter video link). According to Charania, “it’s not out of the realm of possibility” that the big man doesn’t play again this season.

Amid the Mavericks’ flurry of injuries, head coach Jason Kidd said after Monday’s loss that he’s doing his best to make sure his team can “hold it together,” per Mike Curtis of The Dallas Morning News.

“It seems every time we’re getting close to getting someone back, someone goes down,” Kidd said. “… We’re running out of bodies here, but guys keep fighting.”

We have more on the Mavericks:

There’s one bit of positive injury news for the Mavs on Tuesday. As Grant Afseth of the Dallas Hoops Journal relays (via Twitter), Caleb Martin has been assigned to the G League, which is another sign that he’s getting close to returning from the right hip strain that has kept him on the shelf since January 10. Martin has been able to take part in contact practices in recent days, as we noted on Monday.
Kai Jones had a strong debut for Dallas on Monday after signing a two-way contract earlier in the day. The 24-year-old big man scored a career-high 21 points on 9-of-10 shooting and grabbed a season-high eight rebounds in nearly 34 minutes. Jones is eligible to be active for up to 12 games on his two-way deal, but Kidd sounds prepared to take advantage of all of those games, as Eddie Sefko of Mavs.com writes. “It’s always good to have flexibility, just in case you have to pivot,” Kidd said. “To get someone like Kai on a two-way is important for the 12 games we have him for. He’s got a great group of guys around him. We need him to play. He’s another seven-footer, which we need. We have had success in these type situations before.”
Mavericks assistant Alex Jensen has emerged as one of the top candidates for the head coaching vacancy at the University of Utah, tweets Jon Rothstein of CBS Sports. Jensen played college basketball for the Utes in 1994/95 and – following a two-year hiatus – from 1997-2000.

Jeanie Buss Explains Lakers’ Approach To Luka Doncic Trade

February 28th, 2025 at 2:58pm CST by Arthur Hill

Lakers owner Jeanie Buss was one of the few people with advance knowledge of the trade talks with Dallas involving Luka Doncic, but she wasn’t sure the deal would get done until the last minute, writes Khobi Price of The Orange County Register.

Speaking at an event on Thursday to promote her new Netflix show, Buss told reporters that the front office proceeded cautiously throughout the process, making sure to prevent leaks that might have affected team chemistry if the deal had fallen through.

“I mean, not until (general manager Rob Pelinka) told me it was done and they had made the trade call,” she said. “Because these things fall apart all the time. It was really important to me that we didn’t blow up the team. If it had leaked out and the trade hadn’t happened, that would be really unfair to the progress that the coaching staff had made with the team. Because it’s a huge distraction. And the trade deadline is part of the business. It increases the level of stress for everybody. And I’m really proud that it didn’t leak out and that we were able to execute the trade in a way that still was surprising to all the parties involved. But that goes with this business.”

Buss compared the acquisition of Doncic with two significant deals from Lakers history, Price adds. She cited the 2008 trade with Memphis for Pau Gasol and the 2011 agreement with New Orleans for Chris Paul that was eventually overturned by then-commissioner David Stern.

As the Doncic trade edged closer to reality, Lakers officials were worried about any unexpected snags that might prevent it from being finalized.

“There’s always this concern there’s going to be some new ruling that, like, now what’s going to happen?,” Buss said. “But what I have complete confidence in Rob is that he knows how to walk a deal through step by step to make sure that everything is complete and buttoned up and that’s exactly what happened.”

Buss praised Pelinka and Mavericks general manager Nico Harrison for their discretion in keeping the deal quiet, according to Dan Woike of The Los Angeles Times. From the time the first discussions were held on January 7, they were able to operate in near secrecy, even though Utah had to be brought in as a third team to take the salary of Lakers guard Jalen Hood-Schifino.

Buss also compared the trade to the type of deals her late father, Dr. Jerry Buss, used to make when he built the Lakers into one of the NBA’s premier franchises.

“He’d be very proud. When you get a player of that stature, you have to give up a lot. My dad was such a great poker player, and he said that he always wanted me to remember that poker was a game of patience,” she said. “That you had to wait for the right cards, but once you got the cards, you had to go from zero to 100 and play the cards and not be afraid to play them. So, it was difficult because we were not looking to trade Anthony Davis or Max Christie. But it was a deal that he would’ve made, and we had to go for it.”

Mavs Notes: Davis, Doncic, Irving, Marshall, Thompson

February 27th, 2025 at 8:17am CST by Luke Adams

Anthony Davis wasn’t able to play on Tuesday in the Mavericks‘ first game against the Lakers since the blockbuster trade that sent Davis from Los Angeles to Dallas. But he was in the building and told Broderick Turner of The Los Angeles Times that he appreciated the tribute video the Lakers made for him and the love that the fans in L.A. showed him.

Davis also spoke about the experience of being traded without having any idea it was coming, a rarity for player with his résumé. Davis had been traded once before in his career, but in that case he asked the Pelicans to move him and knew for months that a deal was likely coming. After learning about the blockbuster sending him to Dallas, the big man immediately FaceTimed longtime teammate LeBron James, he told Turner.

“When it happened, I honestly didn’t know s–t,” Davis said. “(LeBron)’s been my running mate for six years … so the first thing I wanted to do was call him.

“… Obviously, I know there are going to be a lot of political things in the front office when they talk to me. The front office has to do what it has to do and obviously they’re going to do what’s best for the organization. So I don’t know if I ever got the ‘real’ about any of it. I don’t know what’s true or what’s not, coming from upstairs. So, my thing is, I’m gonna go to my counterpart who I’ve been running with and see what’s going on, get his reaction and that’s all it was. We had a conversation. That was it.

“Everybody’s saying nobody knew and all this other s–t. I just don’t believe it. But, hey man, I’m past that. I’m ready to move forward with Dallas, try to get a championship there with these guys. First off, getting back on the floor and get ready to compete. All the emotions, that s–t lasted that night when it was just a shock.”

Davis, who is currently on the shelf with an adductor strain, is scheduled to be reevaluated on March 6.

Here’s more on the Mavs:

As Sam Amick of The Athletic writes, there are a number of people in Dallas who are predicting Luka Doncic‘s “basketball demise” in the coming years due to his health history and social habits that include “a taste for beer and hookah.” But Doncic showed in Tuesday’s Lakers win over Dallas why the decision to trade him could age horribly, according to Amick, who says most people around the league continue to think that the Mavs made a “grave mistake.”
After having been teammates with Doncic for two years, it was “awkward” but “fun” to face him as an opponent, Kyrie Irving told reporters after Tuesday’s game, per Mike Curtis of The Dallas Morning News. Irving spoke at length about his bond with Doncic and said it’s “one of those lifetime things” that goes beyond basketball. The Lakers’ newest star agreed. “Kai is my hermano,” Doncic said. “We go way beyond basketball. So, it was good to see those guys. Like I said, we went to the wars together, and it was really fun to see them all.”
Mavericks forward Naji Marshall acknowledged in a conversation with Mark Medina of Sportskeeda that it has been a challenging few weeks for the team, which has had to deal with the aftermath of the Doncic trade and a series of injuries that have decimated the frontcourt. However, he remains bullish about the Mavs’ chances of contending this season. “I think we’re all still locked in,” Marshall said. “Everyone is still focused and not letting the outside noise derail the goals that we made up at the beginning of the season. And it’s still very possible to accomplish those. So I think that we’re in a great spot. … Stay tuned. It’s a long season. We are not done yet. Stay tuned.”
Following Sunday’s game in Golden State, Mavericks sharpshooter Klay Thompson presented Dr. Richard Ferkel, who repaired Thompson’s Achilles tear in 2020, with a 2022 Warriors championship ring, as Amick relays (Twitter video link). Kalan Hooks of ESPN has the full story.

Southwest Notes: Powell, Christie, Smith Jr., Bagley

February 25th, 2025 at 6:46pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Mavericks won’t have Anthony Davis when they face the Lakers for the first time since the teams’ blockbuster deal that landed Luka Doncic in Los Angeles. They could get another big man back for the showdown. Dwight Powell, who has missed the last 16 games due to a hip injury, has been upgraded as questionable, Marc Stein tweets.

It’s expected that Powell will be active, Stein adds. Powell has appeared in 33 games off the bench this season, though he’s averaged just 7.6 minutes in those appearances.

The Lakers will honor Davis with a video tribute, NBA insider Chris Haynes tweets.

We have more from the Southwest Division:

Another of the players the Mavericks acquired from the Lakers was guard Max Christie. He has given Dallas a boost since the deal, averaging 15.3 points, 4.9 rebounds and 3.1 assists in eight games. Christie told Andscape’s Marc J. Spears he’ll looking forward to Tuesday’s game but harbors no ill will toward his former team. “I’m not even looking at this game as a ‘revenge game,’” Christie said. “I’m actually looking forward to it from a sense that I get to see old teammates, old colleagues, old coaches. I’m looking forward to just enjoying that game. I want to win, obviously. The Lakers are a playoff team. They’re really, really good. It’s a good test for us as a matchup, as a team as well. But I’m not going in there with any bad blood or any intention of trying to drop 40 on them. I’m just going in there to try to win the game, play my game and let the game come to me.”
Blending Jabari Smith Jr.‘s offensive skills with the current rotation will be a key to the Rockets’ postseason success, Kelly Iko of The Athletic writes. If Houston has any hope of making a deep run, Smith must become more of a focal offensive option, according to Iko. Smith has played two games since recovering from a fractured hand, an injury he suffered on New Year’s Day.
Big man Marvin Bagley III wound up with the Grizzlies in a three-team trade earlier this month. Bagley, the No. 2 pick of the 2018 draft, has only made one brief appearance with Memphis. Damichael Cole of the Memphis Commercial Appeal explores how Bagley might carve out a role with the Grizzlies, his fourth team since entering the league. He’ll be a free agent after the season.

Mavs Notes: Irving, Doncic, Trade, Injuries, Davis, Martin

February 21st, 2025 at 2:29pm CST by Rory Maher

In an interview with ESPN’s Malika Andrews during All-Star weekend (YouTube link), star guard Kyrie Irving called for the Mavericks to “tailor back” their criticism of Luka Doncic, who was shockingly traded to the Lakers prior to the deadline earlier this month. As Grant Afseth writes for Athlon Sports, there have been numerous media leaks that have been critical of Doncic in the aftermath of the deal while glossing over how impactful he was during his time with the team.

“Part of our job every day to deal with the public space, but there were real relationships that were built behind the scenes that will transcend just the basketball court, coaching, and then upper management,” Irving told ESPN. “I know that for my own peace of mind, just because we not only had two years together, but we got a chance to know each other as men.

“Hopefully, we can tailor back on some of the public criticism aspects of it and really just maintain the kindness and the compassion that we have for each other that’s real every day, not just one moment or a sound bite that ends up being described as something that could be taken out of context. That’s what I feel like is going on right now. People are highly emotional. I’m not the one to shun anybody, whether in a public forum or behind the scenes, and trying not to have that happen.”

Here’s more on the Mavs:

In an in-depth feature story for ESPN.com, Michael Rothstein examines the local fallout from arguably the most stunning trade in NBA history, as well as the team’s botched handling of the aftermath, which included censoring Doncic out of a promotional video on Friday morning. One longtime Mavericks fan who is also the co-founder and managing partner of a local public relations firm said the trade and fallout were handled “atrociously,” according to Rothstein. “If all of them were aligned and able to articulate their rationale without bashing Luka,” said Stephen Reiff, “I think it would have helped, and I think it would have gone away quicker. [It] has made it a lot worse.”
Part of management’s rationale behind the deal was the idea of featuring a massive, defense-first frontcourt, with P.J. Washington at small forward, Anthony Davis at power forward and Daniel Gafford at center. As Christian Clark of The Athletic observes, that trio looked promising together through about three quarters on February 8 against Houston, but then Washington (ankle) and Davis (adductor strain) went down with injuries, followed by Gafford sustaining a Grade 3 MCL sprain on Feb. 10. Due to a litany of injuries up front (second-year center Dereck Lively has been out since January due to an ankle fracture), the Mavs have instead had to scramble and go small, Clark notes. “I’d say our goals are still obtainable,” head coach Jason Kidd said Thursday. “It’s a matter of, ‘Can we get healthy?’“
Kidd dodged a question about whether Davis’ “good progress” means he’ll avoid surgery, tweets Mike Curtis of The Dallas Morning News. However, it certainly sounds like Davis is trending in the right direction. “I’m not a doctor,” Kidd said. “(Davis’ reevaluation is) in two weeks. I think you’ll get a better understanding of what has to take place but right now he’s doing great. He’s in the weight room. He was shooting on the court. A lot of positive things for him. I don’t know if that means surgery, but I think we’re all excited to see him back to work.”
Kidd also gave an update on Caleb Martin on Thursday, per Curtis (Twitter link). Acquired from Philadelphia in a trade involving Quentin Grimes and second-round picks, Martin still isn’t doing contact work as he recovers from a hip injury. “Caleb is doing better,” Kidd said. “I don’t know if you guys were in there when he was doing some dribbling and shooting on the court. No contact, but he is trending in the right direction. He feels better.”

Mavs’ Anthony Davis Out At Least Two More Weeks

February 20th, 2025 at 2:02pm CST by Rory Maher

While star big man Anthony Davis is “making good progress” from his left adductor strain, he will be sidelined for at least two more weeks, which is when he’ll be reevaluated, the Mavericks announced today in a press release (Twitter link).

This is the first formal timeline Dallas has provided on Davis since he sustained the injury on February 8 against Houston. It was his first game in Mavs uniform following the blockbuster trade that sent Luka Doncic to the Lakers.

Reporting at the time indicated that Davis was expected to miss multiple weeks with the injury, with Marc Stein later reporting that there was hope that surgery could be avoided.

Head coach Jason Kidd told reporters today (Twitter link via Mike Curtis of The Dallas Morning News) that Davis and fellow big men Daniel Gafford (Grade 3 MCL Sprain) and Dereck Lively (ankle fracture) will all be reevaluated on Mar. 6. Reports have indicated that Gafford, who was injured on Feb. 10, and Lively, who is now out of a walking boot , are expected to miss additional time beyond Mar. 6.

On a more positive note, starting forward P.J. Washington, who sprained his right ankle on Feb. 8 and missed the final three games before the All-Star break, was a full participant in Thursday’s practice and will be questionable for Friday’s contest vs. New Orleans (Twitter links via the Mavs).

Backup center Dwight Powell, who has been out of action since Jan. 17 due to a right hip strain, went through the non-contact portions of Thursday’s practice. He’s doubtful for Friday’s game, but Kidd said both players are “trending in the right direction,” tweets Christian Clark of The Athletic.

Despite the litany of frontcourt injuries, the Mavs entered the break having won four of their past five games. They’ll also have journeyman center Moses Brown active tomorrow against the Pelicans — he went through today’s practice after his 10-day contract became official.

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