The Cavaliers confirmed on Tuesday (via Twitter) that forward Dean Wade has been diagnosed with a right knee bone bruise and will be out for at least the next two weeks, as Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com reported earlier. According to Fedor (subscription required), it’s possible another Cavs forward Isaac Okoro, will face a similar injury recovery timeline to Wade.
As Fedor writes, Okoro missed eight games in late December and early January due to sprained AC joint in his right shoulder. He returned to action on Jan. 8 and appeared in five consecutive contests, but aggravated the injury in a Jan. 16 matchup with Oklahoma City and has been unavailable for Cleveland’s past six games.
Okoro hasn’t done much on-court work yet and the Cavs are committed to taking it slow with him in order to get him fully healthy for the home stretch of the season, Fedor writes.
“Shoulders are tricky — as the complete amateur I am,” head coach Kenny Atkinson said recently. “He will never say this, but you could see that he was feeling it even before he got hit again. A lot of these guys aren’t 100 percent. But a shoulder is tricky. It’s like a pitcher. That is what you’re shooting with. Any kind of discomfort there … we’re going to figure that one out. I told him, ‘We need you as close to 100 percent as possible. You don’t have to rush this thing.’ I want him thinking long term. We need him down the road.”
The banged-up Cavs have also been down another wing, with Caris LeVert having missed five straight games due to a sprained right wrist. While LeVert appears to be trending toward a return, he continues to feel pain in that wrist when he tests it out, most recently in an on-court shooting session on Monday, per Fedor.
“I think that’s more day-to-day,” Atkinson said. “That’s my feel with it. Still not feeling right. These are sensitive things when it comes to shooting the ball. If a guy is not feeling it, we err on the side of caution.”
Max Strus, who didn’t make his season debut until December 20 due to health issues of his own, came off the bench in his first 13 appearances of 2024/25, but has started each of Cleveland’s past five games and figures to remain in that role for the foreseeable future with most of the team’s other small forwards battling injuries, Fedor writes.
How about this,
Cavs get Andrew Wiggins
Heat get LeVert, Niang, Lonney, Payton, Anderson
Warriors get Butler and Heat tiny contracts
Cavs now need SF.
Cavs unlikely to try to fix what ain’t broken. Probably waiting for the buyout market.
That or a small-ticket acquisition like Torrey Craig. Maybe Dalano Banton, who is a good on-ball defender who provides length and passing ability. Johnny Juzang is a good shooter and wouldn’t cost much, plus the Jazz aren’t likely to keep him long-term.
Im curious to see if they can slip the tax while not downgrading toooo much on the court, that be a great deadline Imo to help this team delay the clock and penalties
Wade or Niang were always the 2 prime candidates to make this happen but both present different obstacles (Wade had too much on court worth and Niang’s extra year buts him underwater quite a bit on the market in a time period dead money isn’t looked upon kindly)
I think they do it somehow tho in the end and it will super interesting as to how
*Very surprised they didn’t low ball Okoro more, I dont think there would have been a better offer but Im guessing Okoro’s camp signaled their would be Big beef if so so they inked it to push the can to the deadline
Okoro was too valuable to low-ball that much. He was playing really well before he got hurt too. But if I had to guess, it’d be Caris LeVert moving if they were going to duck the tax.
That’s an option too if they can find a suitable replacement for under about 13 mill for him. Tough find thats why I leaned Niang/Wade
Agree he was too valuable, its just the money had all dried up league wide by then /they probably could have low balled him to get right under the tax and he would have had to begrudgingly sign
(Tho yes at that point he could have asked for a 1+1 player option and jetted after this year if the market warmed back up, there probably would have been beef )
The Pistons would have immediately scooped him up if that were the case. They expected the Cavs to match anything they made, which is why they didn’t; they wanted to see if the Cavs would low-ball him first, dropping the total price tag. Bickerstaff loves Okoro.
Yea that would have been smooth by Det, never heard that but thanks for the nugget, makes a lotta sense now. Its crazy in the NBA how much these mid tier players depend on cap teams to at least “show interest” or they begin to hold little power in their own markets
I think they did the right thing its just hard not to wonder out loud when they sit 2 M above and had a 50 day standoff with him
I think they will trade out of luxury tax…
Wade out ……. Okoro out. …….
Bulls will give Williams away ……..
Williams has upside, but the contract is too big of an impediment for the level of value he currently provides. If it was a logjam type of thing, where he just didn’t get the minutes to play and would in Cleveland, that would be good. But it’s not. He’s just not there. Too inconsistent, too injury prone, and too expensive relative to production. The Cavs would be better served trying to get the best out of Tyson instead if they’re trying to develop a wing.
I don’t see it happening. Nor do I think it should.
You don’t know what he will provide. Bulls certainly don’t. Whole point is to go to new place. I see another OG. Even if he’s 75% of OG. He’s a bargain at 18 mill.
I don’t see that at all. Hard pass.
I’m going to show you what I mean. And I’ll back it up with stats. To be continued …….
Not sure how much of Pat Will you’ve actually watched outside his 3p % and his defensive reputation. But Pat Will lacks a lot of skill. It’s not like Lauri who was clearly misused. With Lauri the vision was there. With Pat it is not and that huge contract doesn’t warrant his lack of production and lack of an overall game. The guy can’t create for himself, can’t create for others and doesn’t rebound as well as a 6’8 PF should. He’s not worth the risk or the investment that would likely take us into the aprons. He’s practically Dean Wade at 3x the price.
Okoro…Okoro…can’t be like OG Anunoby and can’t be healthy either.
If you are responding to me. I said Williams can be like OG. Not Okoro. Okoro has other issues. Williams issues are all Bulls related.
Spurs: Zion Williamson and Georges Niang
Pels: Keldon Johnson, Jeremy Sochan, Caris Levert, Issac Okoro, Cavs 1st, Spurs 1st, Spurs 2nd
Cavs: Herb Jones and Harrison Barnes