Dallas Mavs Miss 'Big Impact' of Dereck Lively II in Loss vs. Los Angeles Clippers

Mavs rookie Dereck Lively II was sidelined for the team's loss against the Clippers, with his presence being sorely missed based on the results.

LOS ANGELES — After crashing to the ground on a failed alley-oop connection with Luka Doncic against the Los Angeles Lakers, Dallas Mavericks rookie Dereck Lively II has become sidelined due to a lower back contusion. While his timetable for return remains unclear, the Mavs must manage to execute defensively without him. 

On Saturday, the Mavs missed Lively's interior presence in their 107-88 loss against the Los Angeles Clippers. With Maxi Kleber still sidelined due to a small right toe dislocation, the team's two traditional center options included Richaun Holmes and Dwight Powell before shifting to small ball personnel later in the third quarter. 

Without Lively to deter drives and impact the boards, the Clippers aggressively attacked the paint and experienced no shortage of success. Los Angeles outscored Dallas 52-32 in paint scoring and 25-10 in second-chance points. Meanwhile, Holmes and Powell didn't record a made field goal and combined for two points and seven rebounds.

"I think when you look at our center position this evening, I think we were 0-4 [from the field]," Mavs coach Jason Kidd said. "That's not what D Live [Dereck Lively II] does. He can put the ball in the basket, but [Richaun] Holmes and DP [Dwight Powell] were good. We just couldn't capitalize and get those guys some shots that they had made here in the past."

Dallas Mavericks rookie Dereck Lively II / Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports

Luka Doncic had a lot of praise for Lively, expressing he's facing high expectations despite being 19 in his rookie season. In the long run, Doncic sees Lively as having "amazing potential" in his career, as Doncic has often expressed. 

"[We missed him] a lot, but that's the thing, he's 19 years old. I think many people on our team expect a lot from him, and being a rookie is hard," Doncic said of Lively. "Obviously, but like I say, he has amazing potential, and you can see it, even in his first season, he's made a big, big impact for us."

Lively was quickly ruled out for the matchup against the Clippers on the first submitted injury report the Mavs provided the NBA on Friday — the day prior. He was moving around during Saturday's shootaround at Saint Monica Preparatory School. 

Dereck Lively II getting shots up at Dallas Mavericks shootaround. He’s already been ruled out against the LA Clippers with a lower back contusion. pic.twitter.com/wdxaJJkAIC

— Grant Afseth (@GrantAfseth) November 25, 2023

The Mavs shared that Lively is "doing better," but they will see how he feels in the days leading into Tuesday's matchup against the Houston Rockets. 

“He’s doing better," Mavs coach Jason Kidd said of Lively before Saturday's game, "He did some shooting, did some running, so we’ll see how he’s feeling tomorrow and then see how he feels on Monday.”

Mavs Give Dereck Lively II Injury Update Ahead of Clippers Matchup

It's been a strong rookie campaign for Lively, who has averaged 8.1 points, 7.6 rebounds, and 1.3 assists in 14 games this season. The Mavs have lost both games he could not play after losing to the Clippers. 

While it's early in the big picture, many consider Lively one of the most impactful rookies from his draft class, along with talents like Victor Wembanyama and Chet Holmgren. Dallas is surely ecstatic to have gained a player of Lively's caliber after trading down to the No. 12 overall pick.

Check back with DallasBasketball.com for further injury updates regarding Lively's status as he recovers from a lower back injury.