Tonight, the Cleveland Cavaliers will kick off their 2017-18 regular season campaign with a nationally-televised matchup against Kyrie Irving and the Boston Celtics inside Quicken Loans Arena at 8 p.m. EST.
Just days before the start of this year’s preseason, Cavs superstar LeBron James turned his ankle in a practice session at Cleveland Clinic Courts. The injury, which forced the former No. 1 overall pick in the 2003 Draft to miss three of his team’s exhibition games, is lingering a bit. However, Dwyane Wade, Jame’s long-time friend and reunited teammate, says most of the team expects him to play in tonight’s season opener, despite his “to be determined” status.
If James, now entering his 15th season in the NBA, is indeed healthy enough to play in tonight’s game, it will be his first meeting with Irving since the Cavs traded him to the Celtics during the offseason. As it turns out, the Cavs plan to honor Irving for his contributions to the team with a video tribute during the game.
On Tuesday morning, several reporters noted that James participated in team practice drills. However, James declined to speak on his status — or anything else.
There is no doubt that James is an important piece of the Cavs’ metaphorical puzzle. In fact, some might argue that he is the most important piece, but he would likely beg to differ. In his 74 games played for the Cavs last season, the Akron, Ohio native posted some of the best statistical numbers of his career, averaging 26.4 points on 55 percent shooting from the field, 8.7 assists (career-high), 8.6 rebounds (career-high), and 1.2 steals in 37.8 minutes per contest.
Will he play or won’t he? The Celtics are probably asking themselves that same question, and that could be exactly what the Cavs are aiming for. It sounds like a final verdict may not come down until game time.