The Dallas Mavericks’ playoff chances just received a potentially crushing blow.
According to Tim MacMahon of ESPN.com, Chandler Parsons has a torn meniscus in his right knee and won’t play again this season. Here’s the full lowdown:
Sources: Chandler Parsons has a torn meniscus in his right knee and will likely undergo season-ending arthroscopic surgery this week. An MRI on Monday revealed that the soreness in his lower right hamstring was being caused by the torn meniscus.
This is the same right knee that gave Parsons problems at the end of last season and through part of his this year. As The Ringer’s Jonathan Tjarks rehashed:
https://twitter.com/JonathanTjarks/status/712257074487398401
Losing Parsons, who is considered one of Dallas’ cornerstones, is not ideal. He was previously on an offensive tear, and the Mavericks need all the capable bodies they can get as they try to stave off the Utah Jazz for the West’s eighth and final playoff spot.
This likely means more playing time for Raymond Felton, who has been sneaky good for the Mavericks this season. Though Rick Carlisle has tinkered with the starting lineup, the quartet of Dirk Nowitzki, Deron Williams, Wesley Matthews and Zaza Pachulia has performed much better when paired with Felton than when they’re playing beside Parsons, according to NBA.com.
Which isn’t to say the Mavericks are better off with Parsons. But in terms of creating mismatches on the offensive end, with Matthews at small forward and Felton or Williams at shooting guard, this does help. Long term, though, this is a huge concern. Parsons has a player option for next season and was expected to explore free agency this summer, at which point he would have likely received max-contract consideration. There’s no telling if he’ll be viewed as highly anymore, and if he still decides to reach free agency, it’s subsequently unclear how much the Mavericks will be open to investing in him now.
