Dallas Mavericks Injury Report (Jan. 20): Latest on Luka Doncic and Dereck Lively II's availability

All things considered, the Dallas Mavericks have done a good job staying afloat in the Western Conference despite the injury to their five-time All-Star. Fresh off their 106-98 win over the conference-leading Oklahoma City Thunder, the Mavs are set to take on the Charlotte Hornets on Monday. Will Luka Doncic be suiting up in Charlotte, by any chance?

According to the NBA's comprehensive injury report released late on Sunday, Doncic will remain out of action against the Hornets as he continues to deal with his left calf strain. This is the same injury that led to Doncic's early exit from Dallas' Christmas Day showdown against the Minnesota Timberwolves.

There's a bit of good news, however, for Dallas fans amidst the prolonged Doncic absence: Center Dereck Lively II has been upgraded to questionable after missing the Mavericks' last two games. Last Wednesday, Lively suffered a right ankle sprain less than four minutes into the Mavs' home game against the Denver Nuggets. Lively exited the game and hasn't seen action since.

Since entering the league in 2024, the 7-foot-1 Lively has provided solid interior defense and an active presence on the boards. This season, Lively is averaging 9.1 points and 7.8 rebounds in 24 minutes of action per game.

The Mavericks faithful, however, are raring to see Luka Doncic back. Despite the Slovenian guard missing 20 games, no Mavericks player has come close to his average of 28.1 points per outing. Simply put, Dallas is a different team when their talisman is sitting on the bench. For what it's worth, the team reportedly believes that Doncic will be back in action before the All-Star break.

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Insider: Dallas Mavericks could be targeting former Sixth Man of the Year Jordan Clarkson

In the meantime, the Mavericks front office will have to deal with the reality of Doncic's absence. According to an NBA insider, Dallas might very well be making plans to bolster their backcourt's firepower to address this issue.

This past weekend, reporter Brett Siegel claimed Utah Jazz guard Jordan Clarkson was a potential target of the Mavericks.

"In addition to looking on the wing, Utah Jazz veteran Jordan Clarkson's name has been brought up in connection with Dallas," wrote Siegel.

The 2025 trade deadline is less than three weeks away, which means that the moment of truth for front offices pursuing key acquisitions is coming sooner rather than later.