Jarrett Allen Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Central Notes: Allen, Οnuaku, Pacers Arena, Robinson

May 24th, 2022 at 11:02pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

The fractured finger that All-Star Cavaliers center Jarrett Allen has been struggling with since March has healed, sources inform Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com (Twitter link).

Fedor adds that over ten Cleveland players are returning to the club’s practice facility this week. Cavaliers guard Collin Sexton is partaking in on-court workouts but is not yet practicing with others, Fedor adds. Sexton is still on the mend from a meniscus tear that cost him all but 11 games this season.

There’s more out of the Central Division:

The Cavaliers are among the NBA teams scouting Israeli Basketball Premier League big man Chinanu Οnuaku, per Aris Barkas and Stefan Djordjevic of Eurohoops. After being selected by the Rockets with the No. 37 pick in the 2016 draft, Onuaku played for two years with Houston and its NBAGL affiliate, the Rio Grande Valley Vipers. He has since suited up for clubs in Korea, Croatia and now Israel, where his club, Bnei Herzliya, is facing Maccabi Tel Aviv in the league semifinals. Barkas and Djordjevic note that EuroLeague teams are also intrigued by Onuaku’s recent performance.
The Pacers‘ home arena is putting the finishing touches on a three-year facelift. Gainbridge Fieldhouse is closing its doors until October as it undergoes the last in a series of renovations that will total a projected sticker price of $360MM, writes Scott Agness of Fieldhouse Files.
A league source has told Marc Berman of the New York Post that the Pistons are expected to pursue unrestricted free agent center Mitchell Robinson, now that draft target Chet Holmgren, projected to be a top-three pick, appears to be off the table for Detroit. The Pistons slipped to No. 5 in the draft as a result of the lottery.

Jarrett Allen To Play On Friday

April 15th, 2022 at 6:05pm CST by Rory Maher

APRIL 15: Allen will make his return and start in the make-or-break matchup to determine the No. 8 seed in the East, writes Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com. The Cavs will also start Caris LeVert at shooting guard, with Isaac Okoro heading to the bench.

Charania first reported (via Twitter) that Allen would return on Friday, barring a last-minute setback.

APRIL 14: Cavaliers center Jarrett Allen, who is officially listed as questionable on the team’s injury report, is going to attempt to return for Cleveland’s play-in game against the Hawks on Friday, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).

ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski states (via Twitter) that Allen considers the odds of him returning to be “50-50,” as the pain in his fractured left middle finger is still bothering him quite a bit, but he’s intent on helping the Cavs make the playoffs. Allen missed the last 18 games of the regular season and Tuesday’s play-in tournament loss to Brooklyn after sustaining the injury on March 6.

A first-time All-Star in 2021/22, Allen had a stellar season for Cleveland, averaging 16.1 points, 10.8 rebounds and 1.3 blocks while shooting 67.7% from the field and 70.8% from the free throw line. He appeared in 56 games, with an average of 32.3 minutes per contest. The team was just 9-17 in the 26 games Allen missed this season.

Hawks big man John Collins has officially been ruled out for Friday’s game, tweets Chris Kirschner of The Athletic. Collins has been dealing with a right foot sprain and plantar fascia tear, as well as a right ring finger sprain. He was considered unlikely to play in the matchup to determine the No. 8 seed in the East, so the fact that he has formally been listed as out isn’t surprising.

In other injury-related news for the Hawks, Bogdan Bogdanovic is listed as questionable with a left ankle sprain, while Lou Williams has been ruled out with lower back discomfort, per Kirschner.

Injury Updates: Doncic, Allen, Kennard, Collins, Niang

April 12th, 2022 at 1:31pm CST by Luke Adams

The Mavericks put out a press release on Tuesday formally confirming that Luka Doncic is dealing with a strained left calf and announcing there’s no timetable for his return.

Dallas won’t have to officially list Doncic on the injury report until Friday, so the club will likely continue to be cagey about his availability for Game 1 vs. Utah. Mavericks head coach Jason Kidd declined to offer any specifics on Tuesday, offering coy responses about Doncic’s ability to practice and the possibility that he’ll play on Saturday, tweets Brad Townsend of The Dallas Morning News.

For what it’s worth, Kidd said multiple times that Doncic is “in great spirits,” while Mavericks guard Spencer Dinwiddie offered a positive assessment of his teammate’s status (Twitter link via Callie Caplan of The Dallas Morning News): “He seemed solid to me. I mean, he don’t seem like a guy that’s going to miss too much time, if any.”

Here are a few more injury updates from around the NBA:

The Cavaliers have officially listed Jarrett Allen (finger) as out for Tuesday’s play-in game vs. Brooklyn. An earlier report suggested there’s some hope that Allen would be able to play on Friday if Cleveland loses tonight.
Clippers sharpshooter Luke Kennard (hamstring) had been officially listed as questionable for Tuesday’s play-in game, but he didn’t make the trip to Minnesota, according to head coach Tyronn Lue (Twitter link via Andrew Greif of The Los Angeles Times).
Hawks big man John Collins, out since March 11 due to finger and foot injuries, played some 4-on-4 over the weekend, but head coach Nate McMillan isn’t sure whether he’ll be available for Wednesday’s play-in game vs. Charlotte, writes Sarah K. Spencer of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “He’s been moving a lot more, and today was pretty much shooting. … We’ll see tomorrow,” McMillan said on Tuesday. “We’ll see how he feels after the weekend of play and what he went through today.”
After missing the last two games of the regular season with a knee issue, Sixers forward Georges Niang was able to practice on Tuesday and should be ready for Game 1 on Saturday, head coach Doc Rivers told reporters, including Gina Mizell of The Philadelphia Inquirer (Twitter link).

Injury Notes: Allen, Doncic, Murray, LeBron, Barrett

April 11th, 2022 at 8:52am CST by Luke Adams

Cavaliers center Jarrett Allen, who has been sidelined since March 6 due to a fractured finger, has shed his splint and has his injured finger wrapped with black tape, writes Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com. However, sources tell Fedor there’s still pessimism about Allen’s potential availability for Cleveland’s play-in game vs. Brooklyn on Tuesday.

One of Fedor’s sources said it’s “unrealistic” to expect Allen to play on Tuesday, while another said that Cavaliers head coach J.B. Bickerstaff is preparing to be without his All-Star center.

“I can’t give you an exact timeline,” Bickerstaff said before Sunday’s regular season finale. “He’s doing more and more with that hand. It’s just a matter of time.

“It’s a structure thing first and foremost. You always want to make sure that it’s as healthy as it possibly can be. In his position, the banging that he does, on the rim, like blocking shots, all those things. Then it becomes pain tolerance. Then strengthening and his ability to use that finger. But he’s making steps. It’ll be one of those things where the day will come and he’ll be ready to go.”

If the Cavaliers can’t get by the Nets on Tuesday, they would face either Atlanta or Charlotte on Friday, with the No. 8 spot up for grabs. One source who believes Allen will miss Tuesday’s game thinks it’s “50-50” that he’d return on Friday, according to Fedor.

Here are a few more injury updates from around the NBA:

Mavericks star Luka Doncic will undergo an MRI on his strained left calf on Monday to determine the severity of the injury and a potential recovery timeline, tweets veteran NBA reporter Marc Stein.
Appearing on 104.3 The Fan in Denver, Nuggets president of basketball operations Tim Connelly said it’s “100%” up to Jamal Murray if he returns from his ACL injury this season. “We want him to feel no pressure, want him to know that the organization has his best interests in mind,” Connelly said (Twitter link via Mike Singer of The Denver Post). “… He’s done a great job in rehab, he looks really, really good.”
Lakers forward LeBron James underwent an MRI on his left ankle in Los Angeles this weekend and didn’t make the trip to Denver for the team’s regular season finale, Frank Vogel told reporters on Sunday (Twitter link via Dave McMenamin of ESPN). Presumably, the Lakers will be able to share more information on the results of that MRI at today’s exit interviews with the media.
Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau confirmed that RJ Barrett avoided a worst-case scenario when he injured his right knee earlier this week and has been diagnosed with just a sprain. The team anticipates Barrett will be back to 100% for offseason workouts in about a month, says Marc Berman of The New York Post.

Cavaliers Notes: Allen, Garland, Mobley, Love

April 9th, 2022 at 6:00pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Cavaliers are still hoping injured center Jarrett Allen can return at some point, but he will miss Sunday’s regular season finale against the Bucks, tweets Kelsey Russo of The Athletic. Allen, who hasn’t played since fracturing his left middle finger on March 6, is listed as “out” on Cleveland’s official injury report.

Allen went through a 15-minute workout before Friday’s game at Brooklyn, according to Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com. He wore a splint over the injured finger and did nearly everything one-handed as he simulated a variety of game situations. Every shot he took was with his right hand, Fedor adds.

A source told Fedor that a major concern involves Allen’s pain tolerance, particularly when he catches passes. Allen and the team remain hopeful that he’ll be ready for the Cavs’ first play-in tournament game, which will take place Tuesday if they’re in the 7-8 matchup or Wednesday if they fall to the 9-10 contest.

There’s more from Cleveland:

The Cavaliers have slumped lately amid a series of injuries, but Darius Garland believes they’re still a “scary” postseason opponent for anyone, whether or not Allen is able to play, Fedor writes in a separate story. “We’re scary with him or without him,” Garland said. “There’s a lot of teams that don’t want to see us with him or without him. We get him back, great. If we don’t, great. We still got basketball games to play.”
Although Cleveland lost its third straight game Friday, there was some good news, Fedor adds. Rookie star Evan Mobley returned from a five-game absence with a sprained left ankle and contributed 17 points and seven rebounds in 34 minutes.
In an interview with Chris Mannix of Sports Illustrated, Kevin Love said this season is the most fun he’s had since winning the NBA title six years ago. Love, who has been through disputes with management in recent years, credits the trust that coach J.B. Bickerstaff has shown in him. “J.B., he’s like, ‘I want you to play free,’” Love said. “You have the green light … so for me, there was no pushback. And from then on, it took me about, I’d say four to six weeks to really feel right and secure and find how I was going to play within our group and different matchups and who I was going to be playing with. I’d say around December is where I found myself within that sixth man role. And then it just grew from there.”

Central Notes: Bagley, Mobley, Vildoza, McConnell, Komoroski

April 7th, 2022 at 6:16pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Marvin Bagley III is headed to free agency this summer but Pistons coach Dwane Casey hopes the front office re-signs the young power forward, James Edwards III of The Athletic tweets. Detroit can make him a restricted free agent by extending a $7.3MM qualifying offer. Bagley has played well since being traded by Sacramento, averaging 14.6 PPG and 6.8 RPG in 27.2 MPG while appearing in 18 games for the Pistons.

We have more Central Division news:

Cavaliers rookie Evan Mobley is questionable to play against Brooklyn on Friday, Kelsey Russo of The Athletic tweets. Mobley hasn’t played since March 28 due to an ankle injury but he was able to do “everything” at practice in Orlando on Thursday, coach J.B. Bickerstaff said. Jarrett Allen is listed as out, although he went through an individual workout.
Guard Luca Vildoza signed a two-year, $1.8MM contract with the Bucks, Michael Scotto of HoopsHype tweets. His contract for next season is non-guaranteed and includes a $500K trigger date if he’s not waived before Milwaukee’s first regular season game. Vildoza was signed on Wednesday.
T.J. McConnell surprised a lot of people by returning to action this week, even though the Pacers are out of the playoff picture. McConnell played 15 minutes on Tuesday after missing 55 games due to a hand injury. McConnell told Joel Lorenzi of the Indianapolis Star he just “wanted to feel like a basketball player again.” “They’ve been talking about coming out here and creating that chemistry, and what better way to get that chemistry started than to come back now?” he said. “You know, I just wanted to feel like a basketball player again. It was hard sitting there.”
Cavaliers CEO Len Komoroski is stepping down from his post at the end of the season, according to a team press release. Komoroski’s career with the Cavaliers began in 2003 as a team president. He took on the CEO title in 2013. He will remain affiliated with Rock Entertainment Group.

Injury Notes: Allen, Mobley, McDaniels, Powell, Fox, Sabonis

April 4th, 2022 at 8:03am CST by Luke Adams

Discussions about Jarrett Allen‘s potential return for the Cavaliers have gravitated toward “if” rather than “when,” according to Joe Vardon of The Athletic. The team has said Allen is making progress in his recovery from a broken finger and hasn’t ruled out the possibility of him returning before the regular season ends on Sunday, but his finger was still in a splint this weekend, says Vardon.

Even if Allen is able to play soon, it’s “highly unlikely” that he’ll be 100% effective, says Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com (Twitter link). In Fedor’s view, Evan Mobley – who has missed four games with a sprained ankle and wasn’t walking with a limp after Sunday’s game – is a better bet to be fully effective, or at least close to it, when he returns.

Here are a few more injury updates from around the NBA:

Timberwolves forward Jaden McDaniels, who has been out since March 14 due to a high left ankle sprain, “looks really good” in his scrimmages, head coach Chris Finch said on Sunday (link via Chris Hine of The Star Tribune). The Wolves will formally reevaluate McDaniels on Monday. Finch expects him to be on a minutes limit when he returns, per Hine.
Clippers forwards Paul George and Marcus Morris hinted after Sunday’s game that Norman Powell could be close to returning from his left foot injury, according to Mirjam Swanson of The Southern California News Group, who notes that the injured swingman took part in an on-court pregame workout. “It’ll be great for Norm if he could get back out there in the next game or two, just to get a good feel back,” Morris said.
With the Kings officially eliminated from playoff contention, head coach Alvin Gentry acknowledged that shutting down De’Aaron Fox and Domantas Sabonis will likely be “something we’ll talk about” (Twitter link via Jason Anderson of The Sacramento Bee). Fox has missed Sacramento’s last eight games due to a hand injury, while Sabonis has been out for six games due to a knee issue.

Cavaliers Notes: Rubio, Allen, Mobley, Sexton

April 2nd, 2022 at 9:55pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Cavaliers‘ last two opponents are a reminder that success can be fleeting in the NBA, writes Joe Vardon of The Athletic. Cleveland got a much-needed win in New York this afternoon to solidify its hold on seventh place, two days after getting blown out in Atlanta. The Knicks and Hawks have both fallen on hard times after surprising success last season, and the Cavs are hoping to avoid the same fate.

Cleveland has already experienced a prolonged slump after being tied for second in the East on February 10. Injuries to rotation players have been an issue, but the problems run much deeper, according to Vardon. The Cavaliers were regressing on defense before Jarrett Allen fractured a finger early in March, and coach J.B. Bickerstaff called out his team for complacency as it began to slide down the standings.

The team hasn’t really gotten over the loss of Ricky Rubio, who suffered a torn ACL in late December, Vardon adds. Cleveland’s defense was third in the league with Rubio, but it has since fallen to 12th.

“It was more his spirit, even, than it was just the stuff on the floor,” Bickerstaff said. “It’s hard to put into words. Like, he has a unique ability to raise the level of each individual that he’s playing with and impact them in a positive way. We missed the stuff that he did on the court, so I don’t want to minimize that. But like, to me, it was him as a human being and his personality that made us unique, the way we were, and as good as we were, to be honest with you.”

There’s more from Cleveland:

The Cavs are preparing for their first postseason since LeBron James left, and Kevin Love believes it will be a valuable experience for his young teammates, Vardon adds. “I think it’s not lost on us, and certainly not lost on me, how major and paramount an experience like this would be for this group, especially this young group in particular,” Love said. “Not going to next year saying ‘playoffs are the goal’ type of thing. Like, we want to see that this year and be able to make the next step.”
Allen and Evan Mobley remain sidelined, but there’s still hope that they might return before the regular season ends April 10, according to Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com. Both have been ruled out for Sunday’s contest with the Sixers, which will mark the 15th straight missed game for Allen and the fourth for Mobley, who sprained his left ankle Monday. “I don’t know when that game may be, but we’re hopeful that maybe one or two of the final games we’ll have both those guys back,” Bickerstaff said.
Collin Sexton, who had surgery in November for a torn meniscus in his left knee, went through a 15-minute workout before Friday’s game, Fedor states in a mailbag column. There’s no expectation that he’ll return for the playoffs, a source tells Fedor, but he continues to make progress.

Cavs Re-Sign Moses Brown; Dean Wade To Miss Several Weeks

March 21st, 2022 at 9:46am CST by Luke Adams

The Cavaliers have brought back big man Moses Brown on a second 10-day contract, the team announced today in a press release. Brown’s first 10-day deal expired on Saturday night.

Brown, initially signed earlier this month to provide some frontcourt depth with Jarrett Allen sidelined due to a finger injury, appeared in four games during his first 10 days with Cleveland. He averaged 2.8 points and 2.0 rebounds in 6.3 minutes per contest.

According to Shams Charania of The Athletic, Allen – who is taking a non-surgical approach as he recovers from his broken finger – is hopeful of getting back into the lineup within the next three weeks. However, it doesn’t sound like his return is imminent.

Additionally, Charania reports that forward Dean Wade has sustained a partial meniscus tear in his right knee and will be out for several weeks, creating another hole in the Cavaliers’ frontcourt. Wade had been a regular part of Cleveland’s rotation this season, averaging 19.2 MPG in 51 appearances. The hope is that he’ll be able to make it back by the end of the regular season or the start of the postseason, tweets Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com.

The Cavs will play five games in the next 10 days, starting with a matchup vs. the Lakers on Monday night. Their games on Thursday in Toronto and on Saturday vs. Chicago will be crucial in the race for a top-six seed in the East.

Jarrett Allen Will Not Undergo Finger Surgery

March 15th, 2022 at 5:30pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Cavaliers All-Star center Jarrett Allen has decided against surgically treating his fractured left middle finger, writes Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports.

An exact timeline for Allen remains undetermined, as he continues to deal with swelling on the finger. However, according to Haynes, there’s optimism that he’ll make it back prior to the start of the 2022 playoffs.

The 23-year-old big man first injured the digit on March 6, in a 104-96 victory against the Raptors. Through 56 games this year, the 6’11” Allen is averaging 16.1 PPG on 67.7% shooting from the field, 10.8 boards and 1.3 blocks.

With Allen sidelined, the Cavaliers opted to shift rookie big man Evan Mobley from power forward to center in their starting lineup. The Cavaliers have gone 2-2 without Allen.

Along with Mobley, Allen and fellow Cleveland All-Star Darius Garland are on track to lead the club to its first playoff-bound season since LeBron James departed for Los Angeles in 2018. The Cavs currently boast a 39-29 record, good for the sixth seed in the stacked Eastern Conference.