Blazers Set to Take on Shorthanded Mavericks Dealing With Multiple Suspensions

Portland will be squaring off against a limited Dallas squad.

Oct 31, 2024; Dallas, Texas, USA; Dallas Mavericks guard Luka Doncic (77) hugs Dallas Mavericks forward Naji Marshall (13) after scoring during the second half against the Houston Rockets at American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images / Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images

On Saturday night, the lowly 10-20 Portland Trail Blazers have been blessed with some rare attendance luck, as they'll square off against a mighty Dallas Mavericks team that will be missing a whopping three starters.

All-NBA Mavericks guard Luka Doncic got hurt on Christmas Day and is slated to miss at least a month with a calf injury — which will effectively disqualify him from being able to make his sixth straight All-NBA First Team this spring, and could cost him his fifth consecutive All-Star appearance, to boot.

This afternoon, the league announced in a press statement that two more key Mavericks, small forward Naji Marshall and starting power forward PJ Washington, have each been suspended on Saturday night for their roles in an on-court altercation Friday night with Phoenix Suns starting center Jusuf Nurkic, a former Trail Blazer.

"The incident, which occurred with 9:02 remaining in the third quarter of the Mavericks' 98-89 win over the Suns at Footprint Center on December 27, began after Nurkic committed an offensive foul. Marshall and Nurkic then engaged in an on-court altercation," the NBA stated.

Oh dam, Jusuf Nurkic and Naji Marshall was squabbling pic.twitter.com/ndaT5enri7

— Ahmed/The Ears/IG: BigBizTheGod 🇸🇴 (@big_business_) December 28, 2024

"Nurkic escalated it by swinging his arm and striking Marshall on top of his head. Marshall responded by throwing a punch that connected with Nurkic's face," the presser added. "As the officials and other players attempted to diffuse the situation, Washington further escalated the altercation by shoving Nurkic to the floor. For their roles, Marshall, Nurkic and Washington were assessed technical fouls and ejected from the game."

ESPN's Bobby Marks reports that Marshall's suspension will cost him $236,452 out of his $8.6 million salary for the 2024-25 season. Nurkic will lose $375,000 of his $18.1 million contract. Washington, missing just a game, will miss out on $89,080. Marks adds that each team will be get 50 percent "tax variance credits" for the suspended salary sums, which will help slightly reduce their year-end obligations.

In the victory, Marshall played for just 19 games, scoring four points on 2-of-3 shooting from the floor, grabbing three rebounds, and passing for two assists. Washington managed to stay in for 20 minutes, notching seven points, three boards, and a pair of assists. All-Star guard Kyrie Irving led the Mavericks in the win with 20 points on an inefficient 6-of-21 shooting from the floor (5-of-10 from beyond the 3-point arc), along with five assists, four rebounds and a steal.

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