Mavericks at Nets
It appears Dallas point guard Deron Williams will be sitting out in his
return to Brooklyn when the Mavericks visit the Nets on Wednesday.
Williams strained his left hamstring during a 103-99 loss to the Toronto
Raptors on Tuesday and is unlikely to play against his former club.
Williams was disappointed with the timing of the injury as he wanted to play in front of the fans that routinely booed him during his four-plus season stint with the Nets. "The last thing I want to do is miss the game," Williams told reporters after Tuesday's loss. "It's definitely frustrating." Williams and Brooklyn parted ways in the offseason after injuries combined with poor play made him the scapegoat for the franchise's underachievement. The Nets aren't doing so hot this season either but ended a five-game losing streak with a 105-102 road win over the Chicago Bulls on Monday.
TV: 7:30 p.m. ET, FSN Southwest (Dallas), YES (Brooklyn)
ABOUT THE MAVERICKS (15-13): Backup point guard Devin Harris (hamstring) has missed the past two games so the timing of Williams' injury is less than ideal. Veteran guard J.J. Barea had a season-high 21-point effort against the Washington Wizards on Dec. 12 but that outing marks the lone time he has scored more than eight points over the past six contests. Barea hasn't played as many as 30 minutes all season so coach Rick Carlisle may have to get creative with his matchups if both Williams and Harris are unavailable.
ABOUT THE NETS (8-20): The play of center Brook Lopez has been a consistent highlight during the poor season and he had 21 points and 12 rebounds in the win over the Bulls for his second straight double-double. Lopez is averaging 21 points on 58.3 percent shooting over the past four games and is averaging 19.3 points, 8.2 rebounds and two blocked shots overall. Power forward Thaddeus Young is also thriving and he has seven double-doubles in the past 10 games after recording 16 points and 13 rebounds against Chicago.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. The road team has won seven of the past eight matchups.
2. Slumping Brooklyn SF Joe Johnson is averaging eight points on 15-of-53 shooting over the last five contests.
3. Dallas PF Dirk Nowitzki had 20 points in Tuesday's 103-99 road loss at Toronto - his second straight 20-point outing.