With their head amply above water at six games over .500, it’s not as if the reigning Western Conference champion Mavericks were in dire need of a lifeguard. But with six defeats in their last eight games,

Mavericks guard Kyrie Irving has been ruled out of Wednesday night’s game against the New Orleans Pelicans, who are similarly resting power forward Zion Williamson.

Irving was absent for the most recent Mavericks game, also against the Nuggets, which the Denver side won 112-101. In that tie, he was hugely missed, with the output for his side clearly suffering from his absence: Dallas are 2-3 across their last five games in the NBA without Irving and 3-6 overall without him.