The Dallas Mavericks will be without center Andrew Bogut after an MRI revealed him to have a minor bone bruise in his right knee, according to ESPN.
ESPN reported that the 32-year-old will be sidelined for between 10 days to two weeks after he was involved in a collision with a Charlotte Hornets player during their game on Monday night.
The collision occurred when Mavericks' Justin Anderson drove to the basket during the final minute of the first quarter. After the impact, Bogut immediately grabbed his right knee and limped straight to the locker room once returning to his feet.
After the game, Mavericks head coach Rick Carlisle said: "We don't think it's terribly serious. At this point, it appears we dodged a bullet." That appears not to be the case.
Bogut is averaging 4.1 points, a team-high 10.6 rebounds and 2.3 assists this season for Dallas. According to NBC Sports: "The Mavericks are 8.6 points per 100 possessions better when Bogut is on the court, all because their defense is vastly superior when he is on the court." The team is already sitting on a 4-15 record, so things are most likely only going to get worse without him.
It only adds to the injury problems the Mavericks have had to cope with this season, as power forward Dirk Nowitzki (Achilles tendon) is out indefinitely, while guard J.J. Barea (calf) is out for a few more weeks.
Dwight Powell is likely to get more of a run in the mean time while Bogut is out. Dallas will be hoping he is able to come back soon, otherwise, they going to find it really difficult to get off the bottom of the Western Conference.