Two teams hoping their top scorers can stay healthy will tip off their best-of-seven Western Conference semifinal series when the Dallas Mavericks visit the Phoenix Suns for Game 1 on Monday night.

Both teams overcame the absence of their young superstars in tough first-round matchups. The Mavericks ousted the Utah Jazz, and the Suns survived the eighth-seeded New Orleans Pelicans, both winning in six games. But Dallas was without Luca Doncic and Phoenix was missing Devin Booker for three of the six contests.

Doncic missed the first three games of the Utah series with a calf strain suffered in the final week of the regular season as the Mavericks were attempting to improve upon their No. 4 seeding in the West.

The league’s third-leading scorer during the regular season at 28.4 points per game, Doncic picked right up where he left off upon returning for Game 4 at Utah, scoring 30, 33 and 24 points over the final three contests, recording two double-doubles and missing a third by one rebound.

“The first game, I was a little janky,” he said of his return to action. “But I felt better (in Game 5). I think the first couple of minutes I was tired, but then I was OK. I think the run in the third (quarter), I was a little tired, too, but just getting my air back.”

The Mavericks clinched the series win with a 98-96 victory at Utah on Thursday, giving Doncic and his teammates three days of rest leading into the Phoenix series.

Booker suffered his injury — a hamstring strain — in Game 2 against the Pelicans, then sat out until Thursday’s 115-109 clincher at New Orleans. He played 32 minutes in that game, contributing 13 points to the win.

Suns coach Monty Williams eased Booker back into the action by bringing him off the bench in the second half Thursday, something he doesn’t plan on doing again moving forward.

“I thought we were gonna have a fistfight over there (with) the look he gave me,” Williams said of breaking the news to Booker coming out of the break. “We had already talked about it, but we had to stick to the plan because it was going to be easier to finish (the game) with him and keep his minutes relatively lower.”

Williams said he became convinced of Booker’s good health while focused on him during the second half.

“We wanted to keep (his minutes) at about 24,” the coach said, “but he didn’t look like he was dragging (his leg) or laboring at all. And he told me, he said, ‘Coach, I feel fine, it’s strong, I have no issues.’ So I left him out there.”

The Suns swept the season series 3-0 from the Mavericks, with two wins coming by eight points and the third by seven. Two of the games were in Phoenix, a November back-to-back that Doncic missed with a sprained left knee and ankle.

Both Booker and Doncic scored 28 points in the lone meeting in Dallas in January, a game won 109-101 by the Suns.

All three meetings were held before the Mavericks traded Kristaps Porzingis to the Washington Wizards for Davis Bertans and Spencer Dinwiddie.

Dinwiddie averaged 15.3 points in the Utah series.

The Suns are a consensus 5.5-point favorite ahead of Game 1. The line opened at 5.5 at BetMGM and has held steady with Phoenix backed by 59 percent of the spread bets and 65 percent of the handle.

The same line at DraftKings has seen the Suns drawing just 47 percent of the bets but 83 percent of the handle. And the 215.0-point Over/Under market at the sportsbook has seen the Over backed by 73 percent of the handle.

Phoenix is also the heavy favorite to win the series at DraftKings, where they have drawn 76 percent of the bets and 84 percent of the handle.

–Field Level Media

While the Miami Heat’s star player is expected to play, the same can’t be said for the Philadelphia 76ers’ franchise cornerstone.

Jimmy Butler (knee), who missed Game 5 of the Heat’s first-round series win against the Atlanta Hawks, will likely return at home to face the Sixers on Monday in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference semifinals.

Tyler Herro (non-COVID illness) is also expected back while Kyle Lowry (hamstring) has been ruled out for the top-seeded Heat.

Philadelphia’s Joel Embiid is dealing with a bevy of injuries including a torn ligament in his right thumb, a concussion and an orbital fracture from when Toronto’s Pascal Siakam elbowed him late in Game 6 with the Sixers up by 29 points.

Butler, a former Sixer, believes that he’ll be 100 percent to open this tough series.

“It’s all right,” Butler said, referring to his knee. “We (had) another day in between. More treatment. Get out there, rip and run. And I know it’ll be ready to hold up come Monday. But the time off has been great for myself and so many other guys that are nicked up.”

No matter who’s available, the Heat are preparing for a battle. It’s the only way they know.

“I think both rosters are going into this knowing both sides have enough to get the job done,” Butler said. “We’ve got a job to do. They’ve got a job to do. I’m banking on the Miami Heat.”

Said Miami coach Erik Spoelstra: “We are who we are. We’re not a passive defensive team. If you want to be aggressive, you have to be exceptionally detailed, disciplined, focused. We have deep respect for them with the names they have available.”

The fourth-seeded Sixers haven’t advanced to the Eastern Conference Finals since 2001 and last won a championship in 1983.

Philadelphia has been eliminated in the conference semifinals in three of the last four years.

While Embiid could return for Game 3 in this series, it’s clearly going to be a daunting challenge to start without him on the road.

A consensus 7.5-point underdog entering Game 1, the 76ers have been backed by 44 percent of the spread handle at DraftKings and 48 percent at BetMGM.

However, their +280 moneyline at DraftKings has drawn only 19 percent of the total bets and handle. Offered at a +260 moneyline at BetMGM, Philadelphia has been backed by 35 percent of the handle.

“I’m going to the game thinking it’s a fight,” Philadelphia’s Georges Niang said. “If I’m going into a fight, I’d rather hit than be hit. So I’m not going in thinking it’s going to be any less physical. … I’m going in thinking it’s going to be a brawl. Once you get closer and closer to the championship, that’s really what it comes down to.”

The Sixers will counter with a combination of DeAndre Jordan, Paul Reed and Charles Bassey. This trio of reserves won’t come close to matching Embiid’s Most Valuable Player-caliber production, but it’s their cruel reality.

“We’re gonna need added efforts from different guys with different opportunities,” Tobias Harris said. “Overall, we kind of know from the last series what worked for us. We have to move the basketball and just whatever happens, go from there. Guys have to be properly spaced and being prepared and ready.”

The Sixers went 6-8 without Embiid during the regular season.

“We almost won the game in Golden State without Joel so it’s possible,” 76ers coach Doc Rivers said. “We just have to focus on the two games in Miami and see what happens.”

The two teams split four meetings during the regular season.

The 208.5-point Over/Under at BetMGM is a shift after opening at 210.5 points. The Over has drawn 58 percent of the bets and 55 percent of the handle.

–Field Level Media

Boston Celtics guard Marcus Smart will be listed as questionable for Tuesday night’s Game 2 of the Eastern Conference semifinals against the Milwaukee Bucks with a quad contusion.

Celtics coach Ime Udoka said Monday that Smart is sore.

“He’s a tough guy that’s going to try to play through things. We’ll get him some treatment today and see how he feels tomorrow, but he’ll be listed as questionable,” Udoka said.

Smart, the season’s NBA Defensive Player of the Year, took two blows to his quad area during Sunday’s Game 1 loss. Smart finished with 10 points in 33 minutes, with six assists and two steals.

He averaged 12.1 points, 5.9 assists and 3.8 rebounds in 71 starts during the regular season.

The Bucks won Game 1 101-89 in Boston to take a 1-0 lead in the best-of-seven series.

–Field Level Media