Cleveland Cavaliers Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Injury Notes: Smart, Love, Ingram, Wall

March 28th, 2018 at 1:59pm CST by Arthur Hill

Celtics guard Marcus Smart is making progress in rehabbing a torn ligament in his right thumb and hopes to be available for the second round of the playoffs, writes Adam Himmelsbach of The Boston Globe.

A cast on his hand was recently replaced by a splint with an opening at the top that allows him to move his thumb, and he has been able to do some light exercises with the injured digit. Smart tore the ligament earlier this month and underwent surgery March 16. His original prognosis had him out six to eight weeks, which sets a potential return about the time of the Eastern Conference semifinals.

“Definitely right now, that’s what we’re shooting for,” he said. “The way it’s going now, we’re on the right path. Hopefully nothing happens where it gets delayed.”

There are more injury updates from around the NBA:

Kevin Love has been placed in concussion protocol and will miss tonight’s game, the Cavaliers announced on their website. He suffered a front tooth sublexation last night and experienced concussion-like symptoms at halftime.
After missing nearly four weeks with a strained groin, Lakers forward Brandon Ingram expects to return tonight, tweets Mike Bresnahan of Spectrum Sports Net.
Coach Luke Walton says Lakers rookie Josh Hart has looked good in three-on-three games and may be cleared to play Friday, according to Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN (Twitter link).
John Wall, who has been sidelined since having arthroscopic surgery on his left knee in late January, may be able to return tomorrow, according to a tweet from the Wizards. Coach Scott Brooks said Wall will participate in the team’s shootaround and a decision will be based on how the knee responds. He is officially listed as questionable.
Clippers forward Danilo Gallinari is targeting Friday to return from a fractured right hand, relays Emiliano Carchia of Sportando. “I hope to play a few minutes against Portland [Friday],” Gallinari said in an interview with Italian outlet Sky Sport. “The hand is not completely healed, but we’ll see how I can help the team in the games left in the regular season. I will try to bite the bullet for the playoff race. The franchise asked me to grit my teeth and play. I will try to do that.”
After re-injuring his right ankle Monday, Celtics forward Marcus Morris will sit out tonight’s game, according to a tweet from the team. He will probably return Saturday, according to Himmelsbach (Twitter link).
Celtics coach Brad Stevens provided an another update on Gordon Hayward, saying he’s still limited to the Alter-G treadmill and hasn’t been cleared to run on the court (Twitter link). “There will be nothing more exciting for him than being able to get back out on the basketball court,” Stevens said (Twitter link).
Cavaliers forward Cedi Osman may be cleared to return to action after a hip flexor injury. He tweeted an image of himself accompanied by the word, “finally.”
Jazz center Tony Bradley has cleared concussion protocol, tweets Eric Woodyard of The Deseret News.

Cavs Notes: LeBron/Wade, Hood, Calderon, Hill

March 27th, 2018 at 10:28am CST by Luke Adams

The Cavaliers have a date with the Heat on tap for Tuesday night in Miami, giving LeBron James a chance to see old friend Dwyane Wade on the court for the first time since a February trade sent Wade back to South Beach. As Dave McMenamin of ESPN details, Wade’s time in Cleveland was short-lived for a handful of reasons, but the failed union didn’t have a negative impact on his friendship with James.

“I mean, I hated to see him go,” James told McMenamin. “I still do. I still do. So, my emotions were mixed because that’s my guy and I didn’t want him to go but, I mean, listen, I felt like that’s where he belongs. I felt like that’s where his heart has always been, even in the one year in Chicago. … I just felt like that’s where he belonged. I mean, you want to be as happy as you can when you’re in this profession, and I felt like Miami is the best place that creates happiness for him. So, I hated to see him go, I wish he was still here, but I understand. That’s why there’s no hard feelings.”

Here’s more on the Cavs:

Injuries have prevented Rodney Hood from meeting the starter criteria for restricted free agents over the last two seasons, as ESPN’s Bobby Marks observes. That means Hood is only on track to receive a qualifying offer worth about $3.4MM, rather than one worth $4.7MM. For more details on how the starter criteria impacts RFAs, check out our piece from last spring — we’ll soon be publishing an updated version for 2018 RFAs.
Bill Livingston of The Plain Dealer makes a case for why Jose Calderon should remain a part of the Cavs’ starting lineup heading into the postseason. The team has a 21-8 record this season in Calderon’s starts.
With Tyronn Lue away from the Cavs for health reasons, the club has responded to adversity and rallied around its head coach’s absence, writes Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com. Cleveland is 4-0 so far under interim head coach Larry Drew.
George Hill, acquired in one of Cleveland’s deadline trades last month, is becoming more comfortable in his role with the Cavs, says Colton Jones of AmicoHoops.net.
While the players acquired in those trade-deadline deals have been solid contributors for the Cavs, those trades were important for another reason — they’ve allowed Kevin Love to re-emerge as a primary scoring option, according to Terry Pluto of Cleveland.com.

Injured Players Return; James Flattered By Hometown Billboard

March 23rd, 2018 at 9:29pm CST by clarkcrum

Like many teams this season, the Cavaliers have been bit by the injury bug, with All-Star Kevin Love the most glaring omission from the line-up for most of this year’s campaign. In a recent game against Chicago, the Cavs were without six rotation players – Love, Kyle Korver, Larry Nance Jr., Rodney Hood, Tristan Thompson, and Cedi Osman.

Moreover, Cavaliers’ head coach Tyronn Lue remains out with health issues. Yet, things are now beginning to turn around. Osman and Korver remain out, but Love returned earlier this week and, as reported by Joe Vardon of The Plain Dealer, Nance Jr., Hood, and Thompson all returned for tonight’s game against Phoenix, albeit on minutes restrictions.

Vardon adds that there is still no word on whether Lue will join the Cavaliers on an upcoming three-game road trip, with interim coach Larry Drew stating, “I haven’t heard anything. I’m just going to proceed and take it a game at a time until I hear something different.”

In another article for The Plain Dealer, Vardon details LeBron James‘ response to Cavaliers‘ fans putting up a billboard in James’ favor in his hometown of Akron, OH. “I haven’t seen it, but, like I said before, it’s very flattering. It’s just, I don’t know, it’s very humbling. I know my hometown, so, I already know there’s no place like Akron, that’s for sure.”

Cavaliers Notes: Lue, Drew, Injuries, Zizic

March 20th, 2018 at 10:53am CST by Luke Adams

The Cavaliers and Tyronn Lue announced on Monday morning that the head coach would be taking a leave of absence for health reasons, and that was just the start of another eventful day in the life of the 2017/18 Cavs. Later, Cleveland confirmed that Kevin Love would be making his long-awaited return from a hand injury on Monday night. The team later went out and grabbed a dramatic 124-117 win over the Bucks, with LeBron James posting a rare 40-point triple-double.

As Tim Bontemps of The Washington Post writes, the day was emblematic of the Cavaliers’ season as a whole, which has been filled with ups and downs, with one thing happening after another all year long. While the roster appears to be getting healthy as the regular season nears an end, the same can’t be said for its head coach, whose health will be the franchise’s top concern in the coming weeks. Lue hopes to return well before the playoffs get underway, according to Bontemps.

Here’s more on the Cavs:

Before Lue’s leave of absence was announced, Joe Vardon of Cleveland.com wrote in a mailbag that he doesn’t think the Cavs’ head coach is on the hot seat. As long as Lue is healthy, Vardon assumes that he’ll continue to be the coach in Cleveland next season.
Interim head coach Larry Drew found out at 1:30 on Monday morning that he’d be taking over for Lue for the time being, Vardon writes in another Cleveland.com article. Vardon notes that the process of having Lue step down temporarily was initiated by GM Koby Altman, adding that it’s expected to take about a week for Lue’s body to become accustomed to the new medication he’s on.
With so many players set to return from injuries for the Cavs, Drew plans to give Lue a call to get his input on some lineup decisions, per Vardon. “We’ll talk about it,” Drew said. “He’s got the final say-so. Whatever he wants, then that’s what we’re going to go with. But if he tells me to make a decision, then I’ll have to make a decision.” Although Love is back, Rodney Hood, Larry Nance, Tristan Thompson, and Cedi Osman are all still dealing with various injuries.
Speaking of Thompson, given the way Ante Zizic has been playing during the veteran’s absence, the Cavs will soon have to figure out how to balance the frontcourt minutes, says Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com. Zizic posted 13 points and six boards during Cleveland’s win on Monday, and has been making a case for a more regular role.

Kevin Love Returns To Action Monday

March 19th, 2018 at 4:53pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Cavaliers forward Kevin Love will play on Monday for the first time since breaking a bone in his left hand, Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today tweets.

Love has been sidelined since suffering the injury during the first quarter at Detroit on January 30th. He was expected to miss eight weeks, so Love recovered a little quicker than expected. He has missed 21 games.

This is welcome news for a team that just lost its coach for an unknown period of time. Tyronn Lue was given a leave of absence on Monday to deal with health issues.

Love will be on a minutes restriction, according to Zillgitt, but he should give the floundering team, which has lost seven of its last 13 games, an immediate jolt. He was averaging 17.9 PPG and 9.4 RPG prior to the injury. He’ll have to blend in with a variety of new teammates who were acquired after Love was sidelined.

Tyronn Lue Taking Leave Of Absence For Health Reasons

March 19th, 2018 at 10:31am CST by Luke Adams

10:31am: Lue will be on a one-week plan to address his health issues, a source tells TNT’s David Aldridge (Twitter link). For now, the hope is that Lue will be able to return to coaching next week.

10:04am: Tyronn Lue is taking a leave of absence from his job as the Cavaliers’ head coach for health reasons, he announced today in a statement. According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link), Lue had been considering this option for several weeks, but had resisted until now. Associate head coach Larry Drew will take over for Lue on an interim basis, tweets Dave McMenamin of ESPN.

“After many conversations with our doctors and [GM] Koby [Altman] and much thought given to what is best for the team and my health, I need to step back from coaching for the time being and focus on trying to establish a stronger and healthier foundation from which to coach for the rest of the season,” Lue said in a statement. “I have had chest pains and other troubling symptoms, compounded by a loss of sleep, throughout the year. Despite a battery of tests, there have been no conclusions as to what the exact issue is.

“While I have tried to work through it, the last thing I want is for it to affect the team,” Lue continued. “I am going to use this time to focus on a prescribed routine and medication, which has previously been difficult to start in the midst of a season. My goal is to come out of it a stronger and healthier version of myself so I can continue to lead this team to the Championship we are all working towards.”

As Lue noted in his statement, he has been battling health problems for several months. The Cavs’ head coach didn’t return to Cleveland’s bench during the second half of Saturday’s game against the Bulls — he has now missed multiple shootarounds, parts of multiple games, and at least one practice this season due to his illness, per Cleveland.com.

It’s not clear at this point how much time Lue will have to miss. We wish him the best during his recovery.

Okaro White Signs 10-Day Deal With Cavaliers

March 19th, 2018 at 8:17am CST by Arthur Hill

MARCH 19: The Cavs have officially signed White, according to a press release from the team. The signing was finalized on Sunday, so White’s 10-day deal will run through next Tuesday, March 27.

MARCH 18: The Cavaliers will sign forward Okaro White to a 10-day contract, tweets Shams Charania of Yahoo Sports.

White, 25, started the season with the Heat, but played just six games before being traded to the Hawks and then waived last month. He appeared in 35 games for Miami last season and is averaging 2.9 points and 2.3 rebounds throughout his career.

The Cavaliers needed to make a roster move to reach the NBA minimum of 14 players. The league permits teams to drop down to 13 for up to two weeks, which is where Cleveland has been since Marcus Thornton‘s 10-day deal expired March 3.

The Cavs are short handed with Larry Nance Jr., Cedi Osman and Rodney Hood all injured and Kyle Korver away from the team on a family emergency, but have been hesitant to add anyone to the roster because each move increases their tax penalties.

Cavaliers Notes: Lue, White, Calderon, LeBron

March 18th, 2018 at 12:03pm CST by Arthur Hill

For the third time this season, an undisclosed illness has kept Tyronn Lue from coaching, writes Joe Vardon of Cleveland.com. Lue remained in the locker room after halftime of Saturday’s win over the Bulls as chief assistant Larry Drew ran the team. LeBron James called Lue’s condition one more distraction in a season filled with them.

“I mean he’s the captain of the ship, so absolutely,” James said. “We worry about his health, obviously. That’s way more important than this game of basketball. We know he’s been doing everything he needs to do to stay healthy — [maybe he should] take even more measures to get himself right. Everything that’s been going on with our year, it’s just another one.”

There’s more news out of Cleveland:

Between salary and tax penalties, today’s signing of Okaro White will cost Cleveland about $400K, Vardon tweets. The 10-day contract for the former Heat forward was necessitated by a league rule that allows teams to drop their roster to 13 players for just two weeks at a time.
Veteran point guard Jose Calderon continues to be a steady, if often overlooked, producer for the Cavs, notes Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com. With Kyle Korver tending to a family emergency and Rodney Hood sidelined with back issues, Calderon posted nine points, six assists and seven rebounds Saturday while playing a season-high 36 minutes. Cleveland is 18-8 this year when he starts and 21-10 when he plays at least 10 minutes. “I know everything lately is about stats, but it’s more than that,” said Calderon, who will be a free agent this summer. “Just for me, like I always say since Day 1, my job is to be ready, to help these guys in whatever situation they need.”
James, who has a chance to play all 82 games for the first time in his career, seems to be healthier than ever at age 33, relays Jason Lloyd of The Athletic. He no longer takes anti-inflammatory injections for his back and he has gotten past the knee pain that used to force him to take time off during the season. “I’m having a heck of a time playing the game right now no matter who’s in the lineup for us,” James said. “We’re not winning as much as we would like, but we’re still figuring out ways to get wins, which is very tough in this league. We already know that. But the joy of the game is very high for me right now.”

LeBron James: Cavs Miss Kevin Love

March 16th, 2018 at 3:32pm CST by Luke Adams

After going on a brief hot streak following the trade deadline, the Cavaliers are once again slumping, posting a 5-7 record since the All-Star break. Following Thursday’s loss to Portland, LeBron James pointed to Kevin Love‘s absence as one big reason for Cleveland’s struggles, per Dave McMenamin of ESPN.com. “It’s been a long time since I haven’t played with another All-Star on my team,” James said. “So, having Kev out has been very challenging for all of us. Kev has a big usage rate on our team. He’ll get the ball when things get tight, chaotic; we can throw it to him in the low post and get some things going.” Love is aiming to return from his hand injury next week.

Roster Move Required Soon For Cavaliers

March 16th, 2018 at 12:24pm CST by Luke Adams

The Cavaliers will have to add a player to their roster in the coming days in order to get to the NBA-mandated minimum of 14 players (not including two-way contracts). Cleveland is currently carrying 13 players on standard NBA contracts.

The NBA’s roster rules allow a team to carry fewer than 14 players for up to two weeks at a time before getting back up to the minimum. The Cavs took advantage of that rule after the trade deadline, carrying a 13-man roster for nearly two weeks in February before signing G Leaguer Marcus Thornton to a 10-day contract. Thornton’s 10-day deal expired overnight on March 3, and Cleveland has once again been carrying 13 players since then — with the two-week mark right around the corner, a signing will be required.

It makes sense that the Cavs have been reluctant to fill the final two spots on their roster, despite being hit with some injuries. The team already has a projected luxury tax bill of $50MM+, as ESPN’s Bobby Marks noted (via Twitter) at the time of the Thornton signing. While a short-term minimum salary deal wouldn’t have a significant cap hit, it would cost the franchise exponentially more due to tax penalties.

It remains to be seen how the Cavs will fill their 14th roster slot, but another 10-day signing like Thornton seems like a viable possibility. Then the team could wait until near the end of the regular season to fill one or both of its open roster spots with veteran help for the playoffs.

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