Southwest Notes: Brunson, Rivero, Poeltl, Pelicans

Mavericks guard Jalen Brunson tells Callie Caplan of The Dallas Morning News that the NBA’s hiatus convinced him to have surgery to fix a torn labrum in his right shoulder. Brunson underwent the operation March 13, two days after the league shut down over coronavirus concerns. He was hoping to wait until after the season to address the shoulder, but the break gave him a reason to get it done right away.

“I truly was trying to get back and trying to finish the season out,” Brunson said. “But also in the back of my mind, I wasn’t putting surgery off and saying it wasn’t a possibility. The morning of the day the NBA shut down, we were talking about when I could get it done if I wanted to get it done — just hypothetically — and then that night is when everything started happening, so we said ‘Hey, let’s get it done ASAP.’ We didn’t know how long this was going to be, how long it was going to take.”

Brunson was averaging 8.2 PPG in his second NBA season before the injury sidelined him in late February. He’s rehabbing at home, but doesn’t expect to return this season no matter what happens when the league resumes play.

“As of right now, I think it’s ruled out,” Brunson said. “I think we’re just planning on next year’s training camp. That’s if everything is going along schedule. But as of right now, I’m just focusing on rehab and getting back to full strength.”

There’s more from the Southwest Division:

• The Mavericks are keeping an eye on Cuban prospect Jasiel Rivero, relays Dario Skerletic of Sportando from an original report by Chema de Lucas. The 27-year-old forward is averaging more than 9 points and 5 rebounds per game in the Champions League.
• Spurs center Jakob Poeltl believes he has fully recovered from a right MCL strain that sidelined him for five days before the shutdown began, according to News4SanAntonio. Poeltl talked about his condition in an interview with Austria’s Die Presse, saying he believes he’ll be able to return whenever games resume. “Although I have no experience with knee injuries, I expect that I will have no problems if the season continues,” Poeltl said.
• Executive VP of basketball operations David Griffin thinks the culture change he wanted to bring in his first season with the Pelicans has been successful, writes Jim Eichenhofer of NBA.com. “It’s fairly clear we’ve got really, really good, high-character humans here,” Griffin said. “The culture has changed a great deal for the better. I think players love being a part of what we’re building.”
• The Pelicans have expressed interest in guard Elijah Bryant of Maccabi Tel Aviv, tweets Emiliano Carchia of Sportando. Bryant, who turns 25 next week, played in Summer League the past two years with the Bucks and Sixers.