Luka Doncic ruled out for Saturday’s game vs. Jazz

Update — Doncic has been ruled out for Saturday’s game vs. the Utah Jazz. Doncic left early in Thursday night’s game and was unable to return. With Doncic sidelined, the Mavs are going to be in a very tough spot. Maxi Kleber and Christian Wood remain out. Spencer Dinwiddie and Tim Hardaway Jr. are going to have to step up on offense. The Jazz are also in a pretty good spot for betting/DFS.

Dallas Mavericks PG Luka Doncic was forced to leave Thursday night’s game vs. the Phoenix Suns with an ankle injury and was unable to return. Doncic had to exit early in the first quarter, only managing to play three minutes before leaving. Doncic was diagnosed with a left ankle sprain but X-Rays came back negative.

This injury could impact Doncic for a few weeks. The NBA is approach the All-Star break in the middle of February. The Mavericks don’t need to mess around with Doncic rushing back to the court beforehand unless it’s minor. We could see Doncic miss a few games since he left to abruptly in the first and was ruled out. Either way, monitor the news and see what the Mavericks say.

For fantasy basketball, there’s really no way to replace Doncic in season long. Hope that the injury doesn’t keep Doncic out too long. Spencer Dinwiddie and Tim Hardaway Jr. should be tasked with carrying the offense. Dwight Powell is an interesting waiver wire option if he’s available. Powell has been filling in with Christian Wood sidelined. Wood is sidelined for at least another week. If Doncic and Wood are out, Dinwiddie, Hardaway and Powell are the Mavs’ core. Josh Green is a sleeper to keep an eye on.

This could have some impact on the NBA MVP race. Doncic was among the favorites on DraftKings Sportsbook behind Nikola Jokic. If Doncic misses so much as a few weeks, that could effectively eliminate him from the MVP convo. It could open up the door for Jokic to run away with his third straight award. It also could help slightly boost Joel Embiid, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Jayson Tatum’s MVP stock.