Cleveland Cavaliers star Donovan Mitchell underwent a procedure Tuesday morning to address a nasal fracture after teammate Tristan Thompson inadvertently elbowed him in the face over the weekend.
donovan mitchell takes an elbow from tristan thompson pic.twitter.com/kl0csKzp0H
— â—‡ (@2MANYBRIDGES) March 16, 2024
JUST IN: Donovan Mitchell (nasal fracture) underwent a procedure this morning
He will be re-evaluated in one week pic.twitter.com/i4lQGDsInp
— Cavaliers Nation (@WeAreCavsNation) March 19, 2024
Mitchell took a hilarious, playful jab at Thompson on social media a couple days after suffering the injury.
Great to have T-Time back… even tho he broke my mf nose😂 @RealTristan13
— Donovan Mitchell (@spidadmitchell) March 19, 2024
Thompson recently returned to action for the Cavs after serving a suspension for violating the league’s anti-drug policy. He has played in two games since returning, and while Cleveland has to be happy that he’s back, the squad can’t be thrilled that Mitchell will now be on the shelf for a little bit.
With any luck, the 27-year-old won’t be sidelined for too long. Mitchell is enjoying another fantastic season, averaging 27.4 points, 5.3 rebounds and 6.1 assists per game. His contributions are a major reason why the Cavs have the third-best record in the Eastern Conference at 43-25.
Thompson, for his part, has humble averages of 3.7 points, 3.9 rebounds and 1.1 assists per game this season, but there were times during his absence when the Cavs certainly could have used him. He has averaged 14.8 minutes per game since returning.
Cleveland will have to navigate games against some solid opponents in the coming days without Mitchell. The Cavs’ next three matchups will come against the Miami Heat, Minnesota Timberwolves and then the Heat again.
The squad dropped the game in which Mitchell was injured, losing to the Houston Rockets on the road, but Cleveland bounced back nicely with a road win over the Indiana Pacers on Monday. Mitchell didn’t play in that one.
The five-time All-Star has already missed too many games this season to be eligible for end-of-season awards, but if he can lead the Cavs to a successful playoff run, he likely won’t mind. Cleveland is trying to win a playoff series this season after taking a first-round exit in 2023.
Less than a month remains in the regular season, and the hope has to be that Mitchell will return with enough time to ease back into action before the playoffs arrive and the intensity of play around the NBA increases.
