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Although it's not the most ideal start to training camp, there are still potential positives to focus on.

Dallas' Luka Doncic suffered a hit to his calf that has caused bruising and he will be out for the next week of training camp, the team announced Wednesday.

The Dallas Mavericks announced today that Mavericks guard Luka Dončić sustained a hit during workouts this week resulting in a left calf contusion.

Dončić will be re-evaluated as necessary in one week.

— Mavs PR (@MavsPR) October 2, 2024

“There’s no concern at this point about his availability. We’ll see how he feels in a week, coach Jason Kidd said to the media,

via Marc Stein

Considering this is the team's best player, and we're talking about training camp (and some exhibition games), expect the Mavericks to be especially cautious in bringing him back. This is not unlike when Doncic injured his calf in the preseason a year ago, reducing how much he could play in a homecoming game against Real Madrid and limiting him for the rest of the preseason, but the issue didn't drag into the regular season.

Doncic led the Dallas Mavericks to the NBA Finals last season, making First Team All-NBA and finishing third in MVP voting after he averaged 33.9 points, 9.8 assists and 9.2 rebounds a game. He is one of the best players in the world and the man the Mavericks have tied their championship hopes to.

With Kyrie Irving by his side, the addition of Klay Thompson, and the expected growth of Derrick Lively II, the Mavericks goal is a return to the NBA Finals and to take one more step, but none of that happens without a healthy Doncic.