Dallas Mavericks star Luka Dončić had to leave Wednesday’s 105-99 loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves due to a left calf injury.
Dončić, in the second quarter of the Christmas Day game at the American Airlines Center, was moving his elbow when he suddenly got up and passed the ball. He then immediately started limping, and he seemed helpless as the game went the other way.
Dončić eventually left the field and entered the locker room under his own power, but he limped considerably while doing so.
The Mavericks ruled Dončić out at halftime with a left calf injury. Other details are not yet known, although he was dealing with a calf strain that he first suffered during the preseason. Dončić returned from this injury in time to start the regular season. The non-conformists, according to Shams Charania and Tim MacMahon of ESPNare preparing for Dončić to be out for an extended period of time. He will have an MRI on Thursday.
Dončić finished with 14 points and five rebounds in 16 minutes. He shot 5 of 9 from the field and 3 of 5 from beyond the arc. The 25-year-old entered the game averaging just under 29 points, 8.5 rebounds and 8.1 assists per game this season.
The Timberwolves took the lead in the second quarter to take a 17-point lead going into the break. They also held Dallas to just 16 points in the period, then pushed their lead to 26 points in the third quarter. Dallas, however, opened the final period up 31-11 and made it a one-possession game in the final minute. But this surge came too late. Minnesota held on until the end, thanks to two huge buckets from Anthony Edwards, to take the victory by six points.
Edwards led the Timberwolves with 26 points and eight rebounds in the victory, which pushed them to 15-14 on the season. Julius Randle finished just short of a triple-double with 23 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists, and Rudy Gobert had 14 points and 10 rebounds.
Kyrie Irving has led Dallas in Doncic’s absence. He gave up 39 points and shot 14 of 27 from the field in the loss. Klay Thompson added 12 points on four 3-pointers. The Mavericks will face the Phoenix Suns next Friday, who begin a four-game road trip.