Battered Mavericks host Utah Jazz on second night of back-to-back

There are tank battles, and there are tank wars. What we may see on Thursday night may be a tank war.

The Dallas Mavericks will welcome the Utah Jazz to the American Airlines Center for a mini two-game series, and it starts on Thursday, which is the second night of a back-to-back for both teams. With both teams setting well below .500 and dealing with injuries, this could turn into a fascinating game for a lot of wrong reasons.

These two teams just played a week ago in Salt Lake City, with the Jazz coming away with a close 116-114 win. In that game, Anthony Davis hurt his left hand after getting it caught on Lauri Markkanen, and now, Davis will be out at least six weeks after imaging found ligament damage in the hand. It won't require surgery, but it may still be the last time we see him as a Maverick, which may be best for all sides.

Jan 8, 2026; Salt Lake City, Utah, USA; Dallas Mavericks forward Anthony Davis (l3) and guard Kyrie Irving (right) speak during a second half break in action against the Utah Jazz at Delta Center. Mandatory Credit: Rob Gray-Imagn Images | Rob Gray-Imagn Images

However, in Wednesday's loss to the Denver Nuggets, Cooper Flagg went down in the second quarter with a left ankle injury. He'd return briefly before the half, but would be ruled out once they came out of the locker room. It's the second time this week Flagg rolled that ankle, as he had done the same thing against the Brooklyn Nets on Monday, but he returned for the rest of that game. Given that he rolled the same ankle twice in three days, it's hard to imagine him playing in this game, but we'll see what the injury report says later in the day.

The Jazz are coming off a tight 128-126 loss to the Chicago Bulls on Wednesday night, which was an impressive performance considering Lauri Markkanen missed the game with an illness. Brice Sensabaugh went nuclear, putting up a wild 43 points, shooting 15/22 from the floor, including 5/10 from three. He got assistance from Keyonte George, who had 25 points, but that wasn't enough to get the win, as Nikola Vucevic turned back the clock and put up 35 points for the Bulls.