Western Conference Finals: Mavericks’ Dereck Lively II to Miss Game 5 With Neck Injury
Dallas Mavericks center Dereck Lively II, who missed Game 4 with a sprained neck, is said to be “questionable” for Thursday’s Game 5 against the Minnesota Timberwolves, NBA.com reported.
The match will be streamed live at 8:30 pm Eastern Time on TNT.
Lively II sprained his neck during Game 3, earlier this week, which the Wolves won 116-107. He sat out Game 4 which went Mavericks’ way 105-100 due to the same.
Dereck, the first-round Draft pick, has significantly boosted the Mavs center game with Daniel Gafford.
He averages 8.5 points, 7.1 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 1.1 blocks per game and is shooting 65.3% in the 2024 playoffs.
In Game 4, the Mavs replaced Lively with Maxi Kleber, who was playing his first game since being out with a shoulder injury in Game 6 of the first-round series against the LA Clippers on May 3. Kleber scored two points in 13 minutes with a protective sleeve on his shoulder.
Timberwolves avoided a 4-0 whitewash after a comfortable win in Game 4, but still face a 1-3 deficit in a seven-match series.
