The Cleveland Cavaliers may be sitting at the top of the Eastern Conference, but they’re reeling as of late. The Cavs have gone 3-4 in their last 10 games and just lost to the Joel Embiid-less Philadelphia 76ers on Friday evening.
To make matters worse, their injury problems continued to pile up, with Dean Wade departing early due to a knee-on-knee hit in the third quarter. The Cavs were already without Evan Mobley, Isaac Okoro, and Caris LeVert as well, which has hurt the team’s defensive chemistry.
Following the defeat, head coach Kenny Atkinson sent a strong message to Mobley and the rest of the players who are injured.
Via Cleveland.com:
“I told Evan, ‘Take your time coming back.’” Atkinson explained. “He’s got to do what he’s got to do, along with our medical and performance team, they’ve got to make the decision. It’s really about long-term health. It’s what I believe in. Whatever comes out of that, we want him healthy for the long term. Taking no risks. That was my message to him and the other guys who are out right now.”
Atkinson also shed light on the Wade injury:
“He took a hit,” Atkinson said. “Praying he is OK. No update yet, but he got knocked out of the game, so we’ll see.”
As Atkinson alluded, it’s unknown what Wade’s status will be moving forward. The Cavs are back in action Saturday against the Houston Rockets as they look to respond from a deflating loss to a Sixers team who didn’t have their best player.
There’s also extra motivation for this contest because the Rockets beat Cleveland by one point on Wednesday. Despite the injuries, Donovan Mitchell and Co. must dig deep and get back on track.
Okoro and Mobley were ruled out Friday and likely won’t play again here. LeVert was questionable, while Wade’s status is something to keep an eye on.
The Cavs sit at 36-8.
