Is Anthony Davis playing tonight? Pelicans at Mavericks injury update for February 21

The NBA All-Star break came and went, and now it's time for the Dallas Mavericks to try to finish the season strong and try to get healthy.

This week of time off allowed for Dallas' banged-up roster to get some much-needed rest, and they enter tonight's game against the 13-42 New Orleans Pelicans with tons of momentum. The Mavs won four of their final five games before the All-Star break, and they have found ways to win while being without several significant role players.

Jason Kidd is making the most of what he's had, and this coaching staff deserves tons of credit for the way they have inspired this team to play hard. Dallas has had little to center depth over the last week or so, and that includes them being without superstar big man Anthony Davis.

Anthony Davis' status for Pelicans at Mavericks on February 21

Davis has been out with a left adductor strain ever since his Mavericks debut against the Houston Rockets on February 8, and according to the Mavericks' injury report that Jason Kidd provided on Thursday afternoon after practice, he will be out tonight against the Pelicans as well. It was expected that Davis was going to be out for this game, as he hasn't practiced since the injury and it was reported that he would be out for multiple weeks the day after the injury, but there was a positive update from Dallas' end about his status on Thursday.

The Mavericks announced that Davis is "making good progress" with this injury, and he is set to be re-evaluated in two weeks. This is a major step in the right direction, and Kidd said that he was doing some work in the weight room and shooting on Thursday.

Mavericks' full injury report vs Pelicans on February 21

Along with Davis, Daniel Gafford, Dereck Lively II, Dwight Powell, and Caleb Martin are out for tonight's game against the Pelicans while P.J. Washington is questionable.

Davis, Gafford, and Lively II are set to all be re-evaluated on March 6 to determine where they stand in their recovery processes, as each player is dealing with a serious injury. Gafford is dealing with an MCL sprain and Lively II is dealing with a stress fracture in his ankle and Davis is still recovering from the aforementioned adductor strain.

While Powell was listed as out by Kidd, he did say that he participated in some non-contact stuff in practice on Thursday, and he is someone we could see return soon considering that he was reportedly working hard in Miami over the All-Star break.

Washington participated in a full practice on Thursday, and fans could see him make his return from his ankle sprain tonight.

The Mavericks will be looking to keep their winning streak alive against the Pelicans, and if Washington is able to play, they should have an even better shot at doing that. There's a chance that Washington becomes the starting center for the time being until one of the other bigs returns, and we have seen some promise with small-ball lineups with him at the five.

The team has missed him tremendously over the last three games, and as Kyrie Irving hinted recently, the team may be getting healthy at the perfect time.