3 reasons that could cause the Mavericks to miss the playoffs again this year

1. One of Luka Doncic or Kyrie Irving sustains a major injury at some point in the season

It’s no secret that a major injury to either Kyrie Irving or Luka Doncic would severely de-rail the Mavericks’ season, but to which extent is objectively unknown given we haven’t seen this team perform yet.

The Mavericks certainly bolstered their wing depth and got better defensively this off-season, but it remains to be seen if they would be able to compensate for the shot creation and playmaking void that would be left by an injury to either of their star players.

If either player were to get hit with an injury that kept them out for an elongated stretch or the entire season, the Mavs would face a tall task in terms of reciprocating that offensive production one of their two franchise spearheads would leave behind. The Mavs aren't left with immediate production to fill that void. It’s no guarantee that Green or Hardy take a major leap, and it’s well-documented that Tim Hardaway Jr. isn’t the greatest playmaker, even if he can get hot from beyond the arc.

Irving and Doncic both don’t have the most idealistic injury history either. Irving has missed months at a time due to knee injuries throughout all of his previous stops before Dallas and just turned 31 this past March. Doncic has been riddled with ankle and thigh issues throughout his five-year NBA career thus far, despite having never been seriously injured.

In response to a recent question in regards to whether his thigh was 100 percent, Luka Doncic had this to say at a post-game press conference after one of Slovenia’s FIBA World Cup preparation games.

While the Mavericks will take every preventative measure possible to ensure Doncic and Irving are healthy ahead of the playoffs, the reality is that they have just as good of a chance as anyone else of getting injured. If either of them misses significant time, it would be a huge blow to Dallas' playoff chances.