Mavericks' Luka Doncic Not Concerned By Chest Injury Before Game 5 Against Celtics

Dallas Mavericks superstar Luka Doncic says he's fine despite contiuing to need pain-killing injections to play through a thoracic contusion in the NBA Finals.

Jun 14, 2024; Dallas, Texas, USA; Dallas Mavericks guard Luka Doncic (77) and guard Kyrie Irving (11) walk off the court after the Mavericks defeat the Boston Celtics in game four of the 2024 NBA Finals at American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports / Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports

BOSTON — Before Game 2 of the NBA Finals, Luka Doncic's injury status became one to monitor when he was downgraded from probable to questionable with a thoracic contusion. He went on to play but has taken pain-killing injections since to do so.

After Sunday's practice, Doncic stated he's not concerned about his chest injury and that he's fine if he's out on the court. "At this point in the season, a lot of things going on," he said. "If I'm playing, I'm fine. No worries." He was listed as probable on the Mavericks' injury report for Game 5.

Jun 14, 2024; Dallas, Texas, USA; Dallas Mavericks guard Luka Doncic (77) and guard Kyrie Irving (11) walk off the court after the Mavericks defeat the Boston Celtics in game four of the 2024 NBA Finals at American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports / Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports

Ahead of another elimination game, Doncic conveyed confidence in the Mavericks' outlook to achieve another win and avoid the end of their season. He emphasized how the group as a whole displayed that confidence in the 122-84 victory in Game 4.

"Yeah, we talk about it. I think the most important thing is to show that we believe," Doncic said. "I think we showed in Game 4. If not, if we wouldn't believe, we probably wouldn't have won that game. So I think obviously the talk is easy to talk about it, but then showing it is another thing. I think we showed it."

Doncic is coming off a dynamic Game 4 performance that featured him scoring 25 of his 29 points in the first half. He added five rebounds, five assists, and three steals in 33 minutes despite the Mavericks pulling key players from game action late in the third quarter.

Stick with MavericksGameday for more coverage of the Dallas Mavericks throughout the NBA Finals.

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