The Cleveland Cavaliers have shown they can weather adversity with several players sidelined due to injuries. Those woes continue with reports that Jarrett Allen will be sidelined indefinitely with a fractured finger.
According to Shams Charania of The Athletic, the 23-year-old center suffered a major injury when the Cavs played the Toronto Raptors on Sunday, Mar. 6.
The only prognosis is the 6-foot-10 cager will be out indefinitely. There is no timetable as well on when Allen can return.
Initially, the All-Star center was ruled out due to an apparent quad injury. But it appears that was not the only thing that Allen is nursing, dealing Cavs coach JB Bickerstaff a major bowl upfront.
Hence, all the Cavs can do now is make the necessary adjustments. Bickerstaff is likely to lean on rookie Evan Mobley, Lauri Markannen and Kevin Love to fill up the slack.
As of this writing, the Cavs tote a 37-27 win-loss card in the Eastern Conference that is good for the sixth spot. They are a game behind the Boston Celtics (39-27) but comfortably ahead by three games over the Raptors (34-30).
If the Cavs can string up more wins, there is a chance that they can still get the fourth spot currently held by the Chicago Bulls (39-25) at the least. It all depends on how Bickerstaff can tweak his rotation to sustain their great run this 2021-22 season.
Love has been having a good season and there is also the great performance of Darius Garland.
But it remains that the Cavs need more people to step up to fill in the shoes of Allen.
Before Allen’s injury, the Cavs were able to resolve losing Collin Sexton and then Ricky Rubio. The changes should be seen in the coming games although Bickerstaff and company will need to find someone who can fill Allen’s numbers.
In 56 games this season, the California native averaged 16.1 points, 10.8 rebounds, 1.6 assists and 1.3 blocks in 32.3 minutes of action.
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