Wesley Matthews has said all offseason that he is extremely confident he will be able to return for the Dallas Mavericks opening game against the Phoenix Suns on October 28th which is about seven months after he suffered his torn Achilles. Matthews has been working extremely hard and although he is likely to come back early this season he is a long shot to be ready for the Mavericks' opening game, according to Dwain Price of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.
Mavs head coach Rick Carlisle believes that Chandler Parsons has a better chance to play on opening day than Matthews. Parsons underwent microfracture surgery on his knee this offseason that he is recovering from and his status for the beginning of the season is also unknown. Matthews and Parsons are going to need to play like stars this season if the Mavericks are going to reach the playoffs again as they have lost a lot of talent from last year's roster.
Matthews was in the middle of another great season with the Portland Trail Blazers before he tore his Achilles but he was still able to sign a max contract with the Mavericks this offseason for four years and more than $70 million. Matthews is one of the best two-way shooting guards in the NBA as he averages 14.3 points per game over his career while shooting 39 percent from three and also provides solid defense.
Matthews has a reputation amongst NBA players as one of the hardest working players in the league. He was undrafted out of college and has turned himself into a very good NBA player through that hard work so he wants to be on the floor whenever he can. Carlisle though has said the Mavericks won't rush him back as they have made a long-term investment in him and they would prefer that he be healthy over the duration of the four year contract. There were reports that Matthews would be held out until Christmas but Carlisle was quick to shoot that rumor down.
The soon to be 29 year old will likely fight the fact that he won't be back to start the season but in the long run it is wise for him to take it slow. Achilles injuries are very serious and the last thing Matthews and the Mavericks want is for him to reinjure himself because he came back too soon.
