On Saturday, the top-seeded Boston Celtics defeated the Cleveland Cavaliers on the road at Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse in Game 3 to take a 2-1 series lead, putting pressure on Donovan Mitchell and company moving forward.
Although the Cavaliers have arguably put up more of a fight than expected against the Celtics in this series, Cleveland needs to get a win in Game 4 in order to give them a chance to advance to the Eastern Conference Finals or Jayson Tatum and company will head back to Boston with a chance to end the series on their home floor.
Unfortunately for Cleveland, the team got some bad news on Sunday regarding the status of their best player, with Mitchell dealing with a calf strain that has changed his status for Game 4 to questionable, while Jarrett Allen is also questionable with a rib injury, according to Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com.
#Cavs Donovan Mitchell is QUESTIONABLE for tomorrow’s Game 4 because of a left calf strain. Jarrett Allen (bruised rib) is also QUESTIONABLE.
— Chris Fedor (@ChrisFedor) May 12, 2024
Without Mitchell on the floor for Game 4, the Cavaliers would have to lean heavily on Darius Garland to pull off the upset, which the young guard is capable of doing even though he’ll be facing long odds.
This is a tough development for Cleveland as calf strains can be tricky injuries because if a player returns to the floor too quickly, they can risk suffering a devastating Achilles injury.
The Milwaukee Bucks recently experienced this with superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo. He didn’t make an impact in the NBA playoffs as he was stuck on the sidelines, and the team was not willing to risk further injury that would jeopardize the next season.
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Analyst Notes Shocking Donovan Mitchell Stat For Cavs