The injury bug has bitten the Cleveland Cavaliers hard lately, and although players like Donovan Mitchell and Evan Mobley are now back in action, the team still isn’t whole, due in part to the absence of Dean Wade.
The forward hasn’t seen the floor since March 8 and has missed 12 straight games. Unfortunately, that streak may continue over the remainder of the regular season.
“That lingering issue, initially characterized as ‘soreness,’ is now being termed a ‘knee sprain’ — the kind of injury that could keep him out for the remainder of the regular season, sources tell cleveland.com,” wrote Cavs insider Chris Fedor.
“A return is not imminent.”
The hope is that Wade will be able to return for the playoffs.
“Sources say Wade is doing everything possible to get back and he finally started making progress recently after the latest form of treatment,” wrote Fedor. “There is hope that time and maintenance will allow him to return for the playoffs — although that’s not even a given at this point.”
This season, Wade is averaging 5.4 points and 4.0 rebounds per game while shooting 41.4 percent from the field and 39.1 percent from deep. When healthy, he has played a key role for the Cavs, averaging 20.5 minutes per contest and sometimes cracking the starting lineup.
Cleveland had a very inconsistent March, going just 7-10 during the month. The team enters April having lost five of its last seven games.
The good news is that the Cavs are still in a solid spot in the Eastern Conference. They’re currently the No. 3 seed with a 45-30 record, and they still have an outside shot at passing the Milwaukee Bucks for the No. 2 seed.
But they’re going to need to start building some momentum if they want to finish the regular season on a high note, and their upcoming schedule isn’t going to make things easy. The Cavs have four games left on their current road trip and will have to deal with teams like the Phoenix Suns, Los Angeles Lakers and Los Angeles Clippers before it ends.
The elephant in the room for Cleveland is that the team can’t afford another playoff disappointment, and the squad’s recent struggles haven’t come at a good time. Hopefully, the playoffs will give the Cavs a chance to reset, and Wade being available would certainly be helpful.
His status will be worth monitoring over the remainder of the regular season and into the postseason.
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