Mavs’ Bogut out at least 10 days with knee bruise
Adding to the Dallas Mavericks’ injury woes, center Andrew Bogut will be sidelined for 10-14 days – and possibly longer – with a bone bruise in his right knee.
Bogut suffered the injury late in the first quarter of Monday’s game again Charlotte when Hornets center Roy Hibbert fell on the floor and accidentally collided with him. An MRI showed Bogut’s injury isn’t as serious as it appeared when he hobbled off the floor against the Hornets and didn’t return.
“It’s a short to long time line,” Bogut said of his return to the court. “From what I heard it’s a minimum of 10 days, but it could be three or four weeks.
“It’s up in the air right now.”
Coach Rick Carlisle noted that he’s encouraged by Bogut’s diagnosis.
“When I walked in yesterday to the practice facility he was on the floor taking a few short shots,” Carlisle said. “I was concerned he was going to be on crutches or something like that.
“We dodged a bullet – it’s just going to be a matter of time. But I think 10 days to two weeks is probably the minimum.”
During Game 5 of the NBA Finals last June while Bogut was playing for the Golden State Warriors, the 7-footer suffered a left knee sprain and missed the last two games of that championship series against the Cleveland Cavaliers. Did what happened Monday seem like a flashback?.
“I knew it wasn’t as bad as the NBA Finals,” said Bogut, who leads the Mavs with 10.4 rebounds per game. “In the NBA Finals I heard two cracks, this one I heard the bones hit, like a slap.
“So I knew it wasn’t that bad, and I could walk off myself, limping. The one in the Finals was really bad.”
The Mavs are also without Dirk Nowitzki (right Achilles strain), J.J. Barea (left calf strain) and Seth Curry (right knee sprain). It was the fourth straight game Curry has missed.
“Our hope is that it’s going to be days and not weeks, but there’s no set timetable. He is making progress,” coach Rick Carlisle said. “Things are going in the right direction.
“It’s just going to take some time.”
Bird turns 60
Former Boston Celtics legend Larry Bird turned 60 years old Wednesday.
Now the president of the Indiana Pacers, Bird played his entire career (1979-92) with the Celtics. Mavs coach Rick Carlisle and Bird were teammates when the Celtics captured the 1986 NBA title.
“He’s obviously done an amazing job there with a small market team putting together a team that’s highly competitive,” Carlisle said of Bird. “As a small market team they have physical challenges, he’s done an amazing job with their limitations.
“My hat’s off to him.”
Dwain Price: 817-390-7760, @dwainprice
This story was originally published December 7, 2016 at 9:45 PM with the headline "Mavs’ Bogut out at least 10 days with knee bruise."