Dirk Nowitzki is doing everything he can to avoid undergoing arthroscopic surgery on his troublesome right knee, but with the knee swelling up again yesterday, his options are looking increasingly limited, as he told the media.
"I’m doing everything I can, conservatively, not to have surgery," Nowitzki said, according to Brad Townsend of the Dallas Morning News. "I guess that’s obvious, that I really don’t want it done now. If I want to do it, I would love to do it after the season, get through the season somehow. But the swelling came back three or four times now. That’s obviously not good news. If it’s going to keep swelling up on me, then that’s obviously not the way to go through an 82-game season and hopefully a long playoff run."
If Nowitzki and the team's doctors decide that surgery is the way to go, the procedure will likely take place next week, with healing expected to take between three and six weeks. Here are a few more Tuesday morning Mavericks links:
- Adi Joseph of USA Today wonders how the Mavericks lineup would hold up with Nowitzki out, opining that the team should be okay if he just misses a few weeks.
- Coach Rick Carlisle was impressed with the team's depth off the bench in its win over Houston on Monday night, writes Dwain Price of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.
- The Mavs have suspended Delonte West for conduct detrimental to the team, Carlisle told the media, including Tim MacMahon of ESPNDallas.com. The suspension "stems at least in part" from an outburst in the Mavs' locker room following last night's game, according to MacMahon.
- While Carlisle didn't specify a timetable for West's suspension, it's not expected to last long, says Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News.
- Offseason signee O.J. Mayo made a solid impression last night after an uneasy start in the team's games in Europe, MacMahon writes at ESPN Dallas.