Mavericks veteran's injuries continue to pop up at worst possible times

After Thursday night's win over the San Antonio Spurs, Dallas Mavericks fans were riding high.

Dallas fought back into the game after a rough first half, and Klay Thompson put on a show in his Mavs debut at the American Airlines Center. Thompson finished with 22 points on 6-10 shooting from downtown, and he and Luka Doncic already formed an early connection.

Dallas entered this game against San Antonio almost completely healthy outside of Dante Exum being out with a wrist injury, but that changed on Saturday night.

The Mavs lost to the Phoenix Suns 114-102 in Phoenix to drop to 1-1 in an all-around sloppy game that never seemed to have any rhythm, and although their loss in the standings hurt, their loss to their lineup hurt more.

Maxi Kleber's injuries continue to become more concerning

Maxi Kleber left this game with a right hamstring injury in the second half, and he did not return to the game. It's unclear exactly what this injury is at this point, but Kleber getting injured this early into the season is not the best sign for his availability moving forward.

Kleber has only played in 80 games over the last two seasons (before this season), and tonight's injury couldn't have happened at a worse time. He was just starting to get his footing after battling a tough shoulder injury in last season's playoffs, and this injury could start the cycle over once again.

Kleber's hamstring injuries go back to the 2022-23 season as he tore his right hamstring, and that injury kept him out for multiple months. This is the same hamstring that Kleber injured on Saturday night, and that could spell bad news if the injury ends up being serious.

Kleber is at his best once he is playing healthily for a couple of months and in a solid rhythm, and if this injury is serious, the Mavs may have a difficult decision that they'll have to make with him if these injuries continue to pile up and he can't be a consistent and reliable role player. He is always solid defensively in his minutes and can play both the four and the five spot, but his injuries have seriously derailed his career over the last couple of seasons.

He isn't his true self when he is always having to worry about not getting injured, and despite some good showings defensively over the first two games, the Mavs could be without Kleber for some time depending on how serious this hamstring injury is.

This injury could end up being a minor tweak that requires him to miss no time, but considering how fragile he has been over the last few seasons, it wouldn't be a surprise if it ends up being something serious.

Kleber's role is so crucial to the way that Jason Kidd runs the team, but his injuries continue to pop up at the worst possible timing. The Mavs have plenty of depth at big man, but no one can switch between playing the four and the five as well as he can.