Dallas Mavericks big man Christian Wood will require another week to recover from his fractured left thumb, coach Jason Kidd told reporters in pregame of their Thursday clash against the Phoenix Suns (h/t Callie Caplan of the Dallas Morning News).
Wood was initially shelved for a week after sustaining the said injury last Jan. 18 in a loss against the Atlanta Hawks.
“It’s just week to week … to see if there’s been any healing or improvement there,” Kidd told reporters.
Wood’s extended absence can only deliver a huge blow for Dallas. Upon his absence as the team’s second-best player behind superstar Luka Doncic, the Mavs have gone on to tally a 1-2 record on the three-game stretch he was unavailable.
The Mavs (25-24) are currently in a tight position in the Western Conference, sitting at the sixth seed, and are in danger of potentially sliding down to the 13th spot at worst should their ongoing two-game losing skid stretch.
This season, Wood is averaging 18.4 points and grabbing 8.4 boards in 42 games played. He is also shooting a consistent 53.5 percent from the field out of 12.5 attempts on average.
Wood was acquired by the Mavericks last offseason from the Houston Rockets. He is set to become an unrestricted free agent in the aftermath of the 2022-23 campaign.
