Former All-Star guard Isaiah Thomas signed a 10-day hardship deal with the Dallas Mavericks on Wednesday after two more players on the team entered the NBA's health and safety protocols.
Center Boban Marjanovic and guard Brandon Knight enter protocol. Sources said that both tested positive for COVID-19.
Thomas, who averaged 9.3 points in four games for the Los Angeles Lakers on a tough deal this month, joined the Mavericks in a 95-94 loss to the Sacramento Kings on Wednesday. He received a commendation when he entered the game in the first quarter and finished with six points on 3-of-8 shooting, adding four assists in 13 minutes.
Jalen Brunson, who holds 25 points for the Mavs, said, "It's hard to have these players coming in on these difficulty deals, especially what they did today, fly off and go straight to work." , they love him. He is one of those players, he is going to get a lot of love wherever he goes."
Dallas added nine players to the league's health and safety protocols this month, including superstar Luka Doncic. The forward remains in all protocol except for Reggie Bullock, who has been cleared after missing the last five games, and Josh Green, who has been made a reserve forward.
Thomas, 32, was a two-time All-Star for the Boston Celtics before a serious hip injury derailed his career. He has spent most of the last two seasons outside the NBA, playing a total of seven games on 10-day deals with the New Orleans Pelicans in April and the Lakers this month.
Knight has averaged 10.0 points and 2.7 assists in the last three games on a tough 10-day deal with the Mavericks.