Out with right ankle soreness, Luka Doncic will not play when the Hawks host the Mavericks on Saturday night at State Farm Arena. Neither will Kristaps Porzingis, who is listed as out while recovering from a left knee injury.
Neither played in the teams’ first meeting this season, a 123-100 Hawks loss Feb. 1 -- since the Hawks and Mavericks play only twice during the regular season, that means fans will miss out on the always highly anticipated match-up between Doncic and Trae Young. In 2018, the Hawks drafted Doncic then traded him to the Mavericks in exchange for Young and a first-round pick, which later became rookie Cam Reddish.
The move linked the two players, who both have enjoyed huge amounts of success in a short amount of time.
Last year, Doncic ended up winning NBA Rookie of the Year over Young, who finished second in the voting. This year, Doncic has struggled with ankle injuries, but is still putting up stellar numbers on a 34-22 Mavericks team, while Young has taken a big leap in his sophomore season. He ranks second in the league in scoring (30.1 points per game) and assists (9.2 per game), albeit on a struggling Hawks team (16-41). In just their second seasons in the league, both were starters in the All-Star game.
Doncic is the Mavericks’ leading scorer (28.9 points per game) and ranks third in the league in assists (8.6). Porzingis is the team’s second-leading scorer (18.4 points per game).
The Mavericks are playing on the second night of a back-to-back, having beaten the Magic in Orlando Friday (Doncic had 33 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists).
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