Does Tony Parker injury open door to No. 1 seed?

February, 28, 2011
2/28/11
3:14
PM CT
The San Antonio Spurs are finally getting their first dose of injury woe. Point guard Tony Parker will miss two to four weeks with what the team is calling a "strained left soleus," or calf strain. He injured the calf in the first half of Sunday's game and did not return.

Backup guard George Hill will likely move into the starting lineup just as he did in taking over for Parker about this time last season when Parker broke a bone in his hand. He'll join All-Star Manu Ginobili with surprising rookie Gary Neal now becoming the likely sixth man. He's missed the last two games with mild concussion symptoms.

Does it crack open the door for the Dallas Mavericks (43-16), who despite winning six in a row and 15 of 16 remain six games behind San Antonio (49-10), to make a run at the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference?

Dallas has 23 games left starting Tuesday night at the vastly improved Philadelphia 76ers, who have moved above .500 at 30-29 and have won four in a row.
Jeff Caplan joined ESPNDallas.com in December 2009. Jeff covers the Mavericks, Rangers and colleges. He has a wealth of experience in the area, covering multiple beats in his 11-plus years with the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.

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