AD improving daily, but still no timetable for return

DALLAS (AP) — The Dallas Mavericks said Friday that Anthony Davis is improving daily, but gave no indication of when the forward they got in their trade of Luka Doncic might be ready to play again.

The Mavericks said a recent re-evaluation of Davis' left adductor strain showed that he “is improving daily and has therefore been cleared for more dynamic on-court movements.”

Davis has played in only one game for Dallas since the 10-time All-Star was acquired in that seismic trade on Feb. 2 that sent five-time All-Star and Mavs fan favorite Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers.

The Mavericks said center Dereck Lively II, who has been out since Jan. 14 because of a right ankle stress fracture, is progressing in his rehabilitation and has progressed to individual court work. Davis and Lively will be evaluated weekly.

After a dominant first half for the Mavs in a 116-105 victory over Houston on Feb. 8, Davis pulled up lame late in the third quarter. He finished with 26 points, 16 rebounds, seven assists and three blocks.

Davis was out with an abdominal strain for his final two games with the Lakers and the first two he could have played for the Mavs.

Dallas went into its home game Friday night against Memphis in the final Western Conference spot to get into the NBA's play-in tournament. That was the 11th game for Davis to miss with the Mavericks, who had 18 regular-season games remaining after that.

The Lakers are 9-2 since Doncic made his LA debut on Feb. 10, and are on an eight-game winning streak.

Mavericks center Daniel Gafford missed his 10th game Friday because of a right knee sprain. The team said Gafford was “showing progress” and would be evaluated again in two weeks.

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