Mavericks' Barea believes ankle OK after leaving loss to Spurs

Dallas Mavericks guard J.J. Barea left Wednesday's loss to the San Antonio Spurs with a right ankle injury and did not return, but the guard told reporters afterwards he's confident it's just a sprain.

The Mavs may luck out here in the sense that they do not play again until Saturday night, giving Barea a few days to let the ankle heal. The 31-year-old Puerto Rican is a key part of Dallas' already shaky backcourt rotation, averaging 8.6 points and 4.1 assists in 20 minutes per game.

Barea has been shooting the ball better of late, hitting 51.2 percent from the floor in his last six games, versus 32.1 percent in the season's first 10 contests.