Luguentz Dort was cleared from day-to-day status Friday, taking him off the injury report just before Atlanta's season opener. He is available to face the Mavericks on Friday night.
What happened
The Hawks cleared Luguentz Dort on Friday at 7:15 p.m. ET, moving him off day-to-day status with no detail attached and no report comment. It is the second clearance in his recent timeline: he was day-to-day for rest on Oct. 12, cleared from an earlier day-to-day spell on Oct. 10, and had been day-to-day with a right knee and leg issue on Oct. 5. Dort has no expected-return date attached to this clearance.
What it means for the Hawks
Dort is set for Atlanta's season opener at the Mavericks on Friday at 8 p.m. ET. Last season he played 69 games at 26.8 minutes, averaging 8.3 points, 3.6 rebounds and 1.2 assists, work that leans on wing defense and spacing. With him unavailable, the rotation minutes have gone to Jalen Johnson (35.2 min, 22.5 pts), Nickeil Alexander-Walker (33.4 min, 20.8 pts), Dyson Daniels (33.2 min, 11.9 pts), Onyeka Okongwu (31.0 min, 15.2 pts), CJ McCollum (28.8 min, 18.7 pts), Trae Young (28.0 min, 19.3 pts), Keshon Gilbert (25.5 min, 11.0 pts) and Kristaps Porzingis (24.3 min, 17.1 pts). Atlanta has not played a regular-season game yet, so there is no record with or without Dort to cite.
What to watch
The next injury report will show whether Dort's clearance holds through the opener and into Atlanta's following games. No expected-return timeline has been announced, since he is no longer listed as day-to-day. Elsewhere on the Hawks' report, Henri Veesaar is out with a right knee and leg issue and Mouhamed Gueye is day-to-day with a left foot and leg issue.
Is Luguentz Dort playing at Mavericks tonight?
Yes. Dort was cleared from day-to-day status Friday at 7:15 p.m. ET and is available for Atlanta's opener at Dallas at 8 p.m. ET.
When will Luguentz Dort be back?
He is already back. Friday's report cleared him from day-to-day status, and no further absence or return date has been announced.