Mavericks second-year big man Dereck Lively could return to action on Tuesday, Tim MacMahon of ESPN tweets. Lively had missed last four games due to sprained right shoulder. He told MacMahon he had a “good practice” on Monday in San Francisco and hopes to play against the Warriors.
“Just got to see how I feel when I wake up, but it’s been steady progress and I’m feeling good,” said Lively, who is listed as questionable to play.
We have more from the Western Conference:
- The three-person arbitration panel is deliberating after last week’s hearings regarding the Timberwolves’ ownership dispute, Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic tweets. Krawczynski hears that it could take a few months before a ruling is handed down. A group led by Alex Rodriguez and Marc Lore is trying to gain majority ownership while current owner Glen Taylor is seeking to retain control.
- The Timberwolves are off to a ho-hum 6-4 start and head coach Chris Finch is starting to second-guess some of his moves, Krawczynski writes. In a one-point loss to Miami, Finch pulled Nickeil Alexander-Walker for Mike Conley with his team up by three points. Conley missed all three of his shots after returning to the game and also had a turnover. “I probably should’ve stuck with Nickeil,” Finch admitted after the game. “He was playing really well.”
- Zion Williamson felt discomfort in his left hamstring on Thursday, the day before the Pelicans faced the Magic, Christian Clark of the New Orleans Times Picayune reports. “We kind of pulled him out of practice,” head coach Willie Green said. “Sat him the next game. He got a scan. We found out the severity of what his injury was.” Williamson was diagnosed on Saturday with a left hamstring strain that will sideline him indefinitely.