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In the fourth quarter of the Mavericks’ Friday night game in Minnesota, J.J. Barea left the game with an injury now believed to be a torn right Achilles tendon, per ESPN’s Tim MacMahon.
Source: The Mavericks believe J.J. Barea tore his right Achilles tendon. Barea, 34, a longtime Dallas fan favorite who played a key role on the 2011 title team, is averaging 10.9 points and 5.6 assists as the Mavs' sixth man this season.
— Tim MacMahon (@espn_macmahon) January 12, 2019
Barea fell to the ground clutching his right foot after taking a contested layup attempt in the fourth quarter.
In his post game press conference Rick Carlisle described the injury as a right leg injury and said Barea would have an MRI the next day to find out the extent of the injury.
If an Achilles tear is the diagnosis, Barea will definitely miss the rest of the season and likely a good portion of next season. His contract is up after this season and with this injury, and his age, his free agency stock will take a huge hit.
This season, Barea has been the head of the snake driving the Mavericks bench unit. In games where he doesn’t play, the Dallas bench has struggled mightily. Make no mistake, this is a huge blow to a team that still has playoffs aspirations.
The injury will likely lead to more consistent minutes for Jalen Brunson, and if Dennis Smith Jr.’s injury lingers it’s likely the Mavericks would bring up Daryl Macon from the Texas Legends.
We’ll have more on this as it develops.