Dwight Powell will be held out of this week's first two Dallas Mavericks games, coach Rick Carlisle said this morning, as the club waits for his hamstring recovery to be closer to "perfect.''

That means Powell, a penciled-in starter, will not play for the Mavs on Wednesday in the NBA opener at the AAC against the visiting Washington Wizards or on Friday at New Orleans.

About a week ago, we wrote that just because Powell was being shut down for the entirety of this NBA preseason doesn't mean he won't be ready for the start of the NBA regular season. Carlisle had said that Monday would "tell a lot.''

And what it's told Casey Smith and the medical team is that Powell needs more time to be truly right.

The Mavs appear to be in the clear regarding Dorian Finney-Smith (hip) and Seth Curry (knee), as both are practicing. Both also figure to get more minutes this week with Powell in street clothes, part of the trickle-down effect that could see Maxi Kleber playing a most prominent role as a starter in place of Powell.