Mavericks' Christmas Day ruined by Luka Doncic's scary injury

Entering Wednesday's Christmas Day matchup against the Minnesota Timberwolves, the Dallas Mavericks were fully healthy (outside of Dante Exum who has been out all year with a wrist injury) for the fifth time all season.

Jaden Hardy and Luka Doncic were ruled as available before the game began, and tons of excitement was in the air for Mavericks fans. Klay Thompson entered the game just three 3-pointers away from passing Reggie Miller on the all-time 3-pointers made list, and fans couldn't wait to see Dallas' rivalry with Minnesota continue.

While the excitement in the arena was clear before the game started, all of the energy was sucked out of the American Airlines Center towards the end of the second quarter.

Luka Doncic suffers left calf strain on Christmas Day

Doncic left the game with a non-contact injury when trying to drive on Jaden McDaniels, and he knew he was hurt immediately. He looked so frustrated that it looked like he wanted to rip his jersey, and he didn't even try to get back on defense because of the pain that he was dealing with.

Doncic immediately went back to the locker room, and he was later ruled out for the rest of the game with a left calf strain. Mavericks fans are used to seeing Doncic deal with injuries recently, but the fact that this injury was a non-contact injury has fans worried.

He was extremely distraught after suffering this injury, and fans at the American Airlines Center didn't get to witness a special performance from him as they expected. Before getting injured, Doncic finished with 14 points, five rebounds, and two assists while shooting 5-9 from the field, and fans missed out on the chance to see a potentially wild game from him. He is known for dominating on Christmas Day, but the only thing that fans will remember about his performance this season is that he suffered one of the scariest injuries of his career.

Doncic is no stranger to calf injuries, as a calf contusion kept him out for the entire preseason, and now he is forced to deal with another injury. His left calf has been his kryptonite over the years, as he has had multiple left calf strains. He had one in last year's preseason as well as before the 2022 NBA Playoffs, and now Mavs fans may be forced to wait to see him return to the floor.

Doncic had just returned earlier this week after missing two games with a left heel contusion, and he truly can't catch a break. It's worth noting that Doncic's heel contusion was also on his left leg, and even though the Mavs have found ways to win without Doncic this season, this was the last thing that fans wanted to see on Christmas.

This is the most injury-riddled start to a season that we've ever seen from Doncic, and time will tell how many games he'll miss. Dallas has to be smart when it comes to how they manage this injury, as they need him healthy for the second half of the season and down the stretch.