BOSTON - Nerlens Noel and the Mavericks understand the timing of the veteran center's thumb surgery doesn't look particularly good.
Noel will be flying from Boston to Cleveland on Thursday to meet with a hand specialist and will have surgery to repair a torn ligament near his left thumb on Friday, the Mavericks said.
He will likely miss about four to six weeks, but the hope is that Noel will be back on the court before the trade deadline.
Owner Mark Cuban said this is not a case of Noel having the procedure done so that he can be "put out to pasture" for the season.