Luka Dončić to Only Play 1st Quarter of Mavs vs. Bulls Due to Thigh Injury

Dallas Mavericks superstar Luka Dončić will be available to suit up for Friday's matchup against the Chicago Bulls. He has been dealing with a left thigh injury.

According to ESPN's Tim MacMahon, Dončić will only play the first quarter. He'll also "most likely" be out for Sunday's game against Spurs, according to coach Jason Kidd.

The organization announced Friday morning that five key players, including Kyrie Irving, Christian Wood and Tim Hardaway Jr. would all be missing the must-win game at the American Airlines Center in Dallas.

The Mavericks need to win against the Bulls and the Spurs in order to have a hope of getting into the Western Conference play-in tournament. They also require a loss from the Oklahoma City Thunder against the Memphis Grizzlies on Sunday.

Despite the odds being stacked against his team, Dončić has refused to give up on this campaign and is ready to expend all of his resources in order to help Dallas get back to another postseason.

"When there's still a chance, I'm going to play," Dončić said Tuesday when asked about sitting out the last few games. "So that's not going to happen yet."

It's been another exceptional year for the three-time All-NBA selection. He's averaging 32.7 points per game—second in the league—to go along with 8.7 rebounds and 8.1 assists.

But Dallas has still been a disappointment, especially considering that this was a team that made it to the Western Conference Finals last season.

Even pairing Dončić with Irving, an NBA champion and All-Star, has not been the solution. The Mavericks have slipped all the way down to the No. 11 seed in the Western Conference at 38-42.

They've gone 3-7 over their last 10 games and have seemingly gotten worse down the stretch. A lot of things will need to go right if Dallas is going to make the playoffs.