No plans now to seek help at point guardDevin Harris will be absent for a while, but the Mavericks say they plan to make the best of it and -- for right now, anyway -- there are no plans to seek help at point guard.
Harris has a left ankle bone bruise that occurred when he crashed into a cameraman with 7:53 left in the fourth quarter of the Mavericks' victory over Denver on Sunday, and he is out for at least the next two to three weeks.
Harris, who said he watched the first half of the Memphis-Dallas game from American Airlines Center and then planned to go home for the second half, said he was actually relieved after being told the results of the MRI.
He said team medical personnel, "thought they saw something that wasn't there. They thought it was worse than it was, so it was good news."
He said he will wear a boot for a week to 10 days and then hopes to be able to get back by the three-week timetable.
"It happens," he said on being hurt. "It's probably the worst time. I was playing well, but you have to treat it as one of those things that happens."
Mavericks coach Avery Johnson said if Harris can return in three weeks, that will be plenty of time for him to get ready for the playoffs.
"It could have been worse," Johnson said. "We're glad it's not season-ending. Everybody goes through it. Hopefully it will be a maximum of three weeks and we'll be able to get him back."
Johnson said that Jason Terry will take over as starter for Harris with J.J. Barea as the backup. Josh Howard, who often brings the ball upcourt when Harris is on the bench, will probably play some at "point forward."
Mavericks owner Mark Cuban was asked by e-mail if he was interested in bringing in a replacement for Harris.
"No," was Cuban's succinct reply.
The Mavericks have been rumored in a possible trade for the Nets' Jason Kidd, who has asked to be traded.
A report in a New Jersey paper Monday claimed the Mavericks had offered DeSagana Diop, Devean George, possibly Jerry Stackhouse and draft picks for Kidd.
The problem with that purported deal is the collective salaries fall about $5 million short of getting with acceptable range of Kidd's $19.7 million salary. Plus George cannot be traded without his permission because of the type of contract he signed.
The trading deadline is on Feb. 21, so the Nets have ample time to make a trade, but Mavericks president Donnie Nelson said for now, "J.J. deserves the opportunity to see what he can do. We've been pretty comfortable with him when he's stepped in before."
Nelson said the Mavericks had no plans to dip into the D-League for a backup and also indicated they had little interest in veteran Damon Stoudamire, who was released by the Grizzlies on Monday and appears ready to sign with the Celtics.
The Mavericks say they have prepared themselves to survive in the event of injury.
"You've got a guy a down, and everybody has to rally around him and step up their game," Terry said. "We're a deep team that that's what we pride ourselves on."
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