The Cavaliers missed a chance to clinch the top spot in the Eastern Conference on Sunday night, but they are relieved to learn that Donovan Mitchell’s left ankle injury is not as serious as initially thought, according to Joe Vardon of The Athletic.
Mitchell suffered a twisted ankle in the early moments of the third quarter during a loss against Sacramento when he landed awkwardly on the foot of Keon Ellis. He went down in evident distress but managed to walk to the locker room without assistance. Following an evaluation, he returned to the game with 3:01 left in the quarter and finished out the match.
“I wanted to get the No. 1 seed and then go from there,” Mitchell told reporters when asked about his decision to keep playing. “If I’m able to go, I’m gonna go. Obviously, a little hobbled after the first adrenaline rush … but I’m trying to win, trying to help my team win in any way possible.”
Vardon observes that Mitchell was limping in the locker room post-game and might need to sit out Tuesday’s game against Chicago. The Cavaliers are scheduled to face Indiana on Thursday and will visit New York on Friday before returning home on Sunday to take on the Pacers again. They need just one victory or a single loss by Boston to secure the No. 1 seed, so there is no need to rush Mitchell back into action until he is fully recovered.
Cleveland head coach Kenny Atkinson expressed his worry when he saw his star player in pain, as Vardon reports. He advised Mitchell to avoid risking further injury by returning too soon.
“If it’s even 5 percent where you’re a little weak or it’s bothering you, you just gotta tell me,” he suggested to Mitchell. “We gotta get you out; we’ve got multiple games to try and close this thing, but we don’t have to do it tonight.’ He said he was fine, felt fine. I see it as a positive. Imagine if his ankle had been severely injured and he was out for a couple of weeks; that could have easily happened. So I’m viewing it as a positive. He came back and played the entire fourth quarter, so that might be the most encouraging part of the night.”
On the same day, the Cavs welcomed back sixth man Ty Jerome, who had missed the last five games due to soreness in his left knee. Jerome made a significant contribution with 20 points in 23 minutes, including 10 points in the fourth quarter as Cleveland mounted a comeback from a 12-point deficit.
Jerome indicated that he took some time to allow his knee to “calm down a little bit, let the swelling go down,” but he never doubted he would be back before the end of the regular season.
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