No matter the severity, an Achilles injury is something that can drastically throw any athlete off of their game – which evidently was the case for Rodney Hood in the Cleveland Cavaliers’ 126-110 loss to the Toronto Raptors on Friday night.
According to Joe Vardon of The Athletic, Hood is dealing with soreness in his left Achilles.
The former Duke product had a fairly rough go of it in the team’s 25th loss of the season, scoring six points while spending just 18 minutes on the floor – well below his season average of 13.1 points over 28.5 minutes per night.
The Raptors seemed far ahead of Cleveland for most of the evening, albeit missing notable players like Kyle Lowry (thigh), Serge Ibaka (knee), and Danny Green (knee).
Kawhi Leonard paved the way for Toronto, matching his season high of 37 points, while Jordan Clarkson posted 20 points for the Cavaliers, with the Cleveland bench combining for 53 points.
The Cavaliers are currently among the three worst records in the league, which means that Hood’s injury is bound to take an even larger toll on their rotation – leaving a need for other starters like rookie Collin Sexton or Larry Nance Jr. to step up to the plate in his absence.
Hood battled with a similar Achilles injury last April, which ultimately kept him sidelined for a good portion of the Cavaliers’ 2017-18 NBA Playoff run.
Whether this will cause him to miss time going forward is still yet to be determined, but for now, it doesn’t look like Sunday’s game against the Chicago Bulls is too promising.