Despite a tremendous effort from Caris LeVert, the Cleveland Cavaliers ended up falling prey Saturday night to the Indiana Pacers at home, 125-113. The outcome could have been different if only both Cavs stars Donovan Mitchell and Darius Garland suited up.
Nevertheless, LeVert knows that absences are part of a long season and that everyone on the Cavs should be ready to answer the call to step up.
“Next man up for us,” Caris LeVert said following the Cavs’ loss (h/t Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com). “Obviously, we have some guys banged up, but we believe that 1-16 or 17, however many we have on our team, we all believe that we can go out there and contribute in an NBA game. Think we showed that tonight as a collective. Obviously, didn’t go the way we wanted it to in the fourth quarter. Think we just ran out of gas.”
LeVert went off for 31 points on 12-for-28 shooting from the field with five rebounds and eight assists in 44 minutes. Cavs big man Evan Mobley also churned out big numbers, scoring a game-high 33 points to go with 14 rebounds and three blocks in 33 minutes of action on the floor.
Mitchell was ruled out of the Indiana game due to right hamstring soreness, while Garland missed his second contest in a row because of a left hamstring strain. Moreover, Jarrett Allen has yet to play for the Cavs this season, as he continues to deal with a left ankle bone bruise.
The Cavs next face the New York Knicks at home on Tuesday.