Injury updates: Damp and Stack

It’s too soon to say when Erick Dampier and Jerry Stackhouse are coming back, but Avery Johnson appeared more concerned with Dampier’s injury during his pregame media session here in Minneapolis. Both are out against the Timberwolves.

Dampier’s swollen left knee hasn’t responded to treatment as well as hoped. He didn’t move well during yesterday’s walk-through and will be reevaluated tomorrow in Dallas, where he remained. The next step could include an MRI exam.

“Swelling was there,” Johnson said. “He was limping pretty badly. Yesterday he couldn’t do hardly anything. We tried to get him on the court and see if he could move around and he just really couldn’t move at all.

“Again, we just wanted to keep him home and get him some more treatment and if he doesn’t respond well tomorrow then we’re going to have to take a further look.”

Stackhouse is wearing a soft cast to protect his sprained right thumb. He suffered the injury Friday against Miami.

“It was a freak thing,” Stackhouse said. “I was going up for a layup, a guy blocked my shot and the ball wasn’t out of my hand yet. When he blocked the ball, my thumb went back with it.”

The palm of his right hand is swollen, which is affecting his grip on the ball. The swelling has begun to subside.

“It’s getting better, though,” Stackhouse said. “I think it happened at a good time. We have three days off before we play again.”

Stackhouse expects to be back in the lineup Wednesday when his former team Detroit visits American Airlines Center.

Avery Johnson is back in that familiar juggling role having two major parts of the rotation out. Gana Diop is starting for Dampier again. Johnson said former Wolves guard Trenton Hassell would have played today even if Stackhouse had been healthy.

The team also recalled Moe Ager from Tulsa, the Mavs’ D-League affiliate, to have 12 healthy bodies on the bench.