Dallas Mavericks' Have 2 Key Players on Injury Report for Game 3 vs. Clippers

The Dallas Mavericks may be without two important players when they face the Los Angeles Clippers in Game 3 on Friday.

Apr 21, 2024; Los Angeles, California, USA; Dallas Mavericks center Daniel Gafford (21) and Los / Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports

DALLAS — When the Dallas Mavericks face the Los Angeles Clippers in Game 3 of their first-round playoff series on Wednesday, they could be without one starter and a rotation player.

Daniel Gafford dealt with a lower back injury during Game 2 and played only nine minutes despite being considered available to return. He is considered questionable to play in Game 3.

"Timmy will be out tomorrow. He'll be evaluated in a few days," Mavericks coach Jason Kidd said. "O-Max is out. He suffered a sprained ankle today, so we'll evaluate him in a couple of days. Gafford is questionable, but he's feeling better."

Apr 21, 2024; Los Angeles, California, USA; Dallas Mavericks center Daniel Gafford (21) and Los / Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports

Gafford did not participate in practice on Thursday but observed from the sideline, raising some uncertainty about his status for Game 3. He walked out of Crypto.com Arena after Game 2 with clear stiffness after going scoreeless and grabbing one rebound in nine minutes.

"He just watched from the sideline," Kidd said.

Dereck Lively II filled in for Gafford often in the second half of Game 2, even taking the floor coming out of the break with the first group. However, other options, like Maxi Kleber, could be utilized in Game 3 if Gafford cannot play.

"it just puts them maybe in a different situation, but we're not asking them to do anything different," Kidd said. "I think you could also look at some other guys having to step into that role, too."

Lively has impressed the Mavericks early in his first playoff series, much like he exceeded expectations even before the start of training camp. His best performance came in Game 2, providing seven points and nine rebounds in 21 minutes. He will be needed in Game 3 to make a significant impact, whether Gafford plays or not.

"He was good in Game 1. He was really good in Game 2. And so, if Gaff is out, we're going to need him to be good in Game 3. But I think he's embraced the experience," Kidd said of Lively. "As we've talked about, he's a different 20-year-old. Again, just understanding life experiences can help you grow a little bit faster. For him, he's playing well for us, and we're going to continue to need him to do that on both ends, offensively and defensively."

Whether Gafford can play in Game 3 or not, he will need to make a more significant impact in the paint going forward. He's struggled to handle Ivica Zubac while being neutralized offensively by the Clippers' approach to deploying drop coverage against 1-5 ball screens and the switching they've used against Zoom actions.

"This isn't the regular season. This is the playoffs and Game 1 is over. Game 2 is over. It's now just focusing on Game 3 and focusing on that first possession offensively or defensively," Kidd said. "Just showing him on tape here as we go forward what he's had success with. Again, we've missed not just Gafford but we've missed some layups. And give credit to the Clippers, but it's also part of the game, and it's about just focusing and being unselfish for Game 3, and that's all."

Another injury the Mavericks dealt with in Game 2 was Tim Hardaway Jr. being ruled out due to a right ankle sprain. He'll remain sidelined for the upcoming matchup in the series.