Cleveland Cavaliers rookie Evan Mobley will miss at least the next three games due to a sprained left ankle suffered on Monday in a win over the Orlando Magic, the team announced.
Mobley endured the injury midway through the second quarter of the 107-101 victory. His left ankle appeared to land on the foot of Magic rookie Franz Wagner after attempting to contest a shot. He looked to be in immediate pain and hobbled off the court.
The Cavaliers announced that an MRI confirmed the injury while it was previously reported that X-rays were negative. Mobley will now undergo a period of treatment and rehabilitation and his return to play will be dependent on his recovery.
— Cleveland Cavaliers (@cavs) March 30, 2022
The loss of Mobley will greatly affect the Cavaliers.
They have struggled as of late, posting a 7-12 record since Feb. 12, and have fallen to seventh in the Eastern Conference. Mobley has helped the Cavaliers post the fourth-best defensive rating while emerging as the front-runner to win Rookie of the Year.
“Hopefully, he will be back sooner rather than later,” Kevin Love said on Monday. “It definitely gutted us to lose Evan, whether it be for a game, two games, three games. We just need to keep fighting and hope that he recovers quickly and can be back out there with us because he means so much to the team.”
Mobley is averaging 14.9 points, 8.3 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.6 blocks in 67 games. He leads all first-year players in rebounding and blocks while he is fifth in scoring. He needs one more point to become the eighth rookie in team history to reach at least 1,000 points.
This post originally appeared on Rookie Wire! Follow us on Facebook!
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