Mavericks In For Tough Game Against Jazz Without Doncic, Wood

The Dallas Mavericks will have their work cut out for them when they visit the Utah Jazz at Vivint Arena Saturday.

The Mavericks’ Luka Doncic and Christian Wood have been listed as out for the upcoming game in Salt Lake City, Utah. Hence, Mavericks head coach Jason Kidd will have to turn to his bench as he tries to pull off a follow-up win against the Jazz.

In their last assignment, the Mavericks won against the Phoenix Suns, 99-95, Thursday. Spencer Dinwiddie stepped up for Dallas, dropping 36 points, nine assists and six rebounds.

Dorian Finney-Smith also performed well for the Mavericks, chipping in 18 points and 12 rebounds.

“It’s just an all-around great team effort,” Finney-Smith said Thursday, according to ESPN. “Once we found out (Luka) was out, we just stepped up.”

Doncic suffered a left ankle sprain during Thursday’s game, and has been listed as out against the Jazz, according to the injury report.

This development is expected to affect their offense heading into Saturday’s game. The Mavericks are averaging 112.6 points per contest, 22nd in the league. Dallas has an offensive rating of 114.9, seventh in the NBA.

However, the Mavs could make up for that in defense. They are giving up 112.4 points per game, 10th in the NBA right now. They carry a defensive rating of 114.9, 26th in the league.

The Jazz has been on and off as of late and will need to have a good outing against the undermanned Mavs.

In their Wednesday loss to the Portland Trail Blazers, 124-134, Utah failed to contain Damian Lillard, who erupted with 60 points, including nine three-pointers.

“I guess in theory we could have sent three people at him,” Jazz coach Will Harvey stated.

Jazz’s Lauri Markkanen led the way anew with 24 points and four rebounds. Backing him up was Collin Sexton with 19 points, while Jordan Clarkson added 18 markers.

The Jazz is second in the league in team points scored with an average of 117.7 points per game. They own an offensive rating of 116.6, which is fourth in the league.

However, Utah may need to work on its defense. They are giving up 116.6 points per game, 23rd in the league. Their defensive rating stands at 115.2, 26th in the league.

The Jazz is the -7.5 favorite to come out on top against the Mavericks, which are at +7.5, according to USA Today’s For The Win. The Moneyline is -324 for Utah and +255 for Dallas.

The Utah Jazz will get ready for battle against the Dallas Mavericks at the Vivint Arena with tip-off set for 9 p.m. EST. The game will be shown over NBA League Pass, and live streaming will be available via FuboTV.