With Luka Doncic missing his 10th straight game with a left calf strain and projected to remain out through at least late January, Irving is Dallas’ best chance of remaining afloat in Western Conference amid a roaring rapids stretch of games.

The Mavericks are currently 20-15 as they have dropped to the seventh seed in the Western Conference. It will be on Kyrie Irving and Klay Thompson to keep the team afloat until Doncic's return and give them a shot at making a deep playoff run this season.

In what has to be considered good news, though, Daniel Gafford is listed as questionable with a left sprained ankle. He went down on Monday against the Grizzlies and was out against the Lakers on Tuesday. Jason Kidd expected Gafford to be out for a while, but he's already been upgraded.

Dallas Mavericks star Kyrie Irving returned for Tuesday night's home game against the Denver Nuggets. Irving, who is averaging 24.3 points and 4.9 assists per game this season, was sidelined the past week because of a lower back injury.

The Dallas Mavericks and Denver Nuggets are facing off again on Tuesday night after playing each other on Sunday as well. The Nuggets defeated Dallas on Sunday by final score of 112-101, and are looking for a similar outcome on Tuesday night.