The Cleveland Cavaliers will once again be without point guard Kyrie Irving for Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Finals against the Atlanta Hawks. Irving continues to recover from the knee injury that sidelined him in Game 2, and has been ruled out Sunday night according to Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta Journal Constitution.
Kyrie Irving out for Game 3, continues to recover from knee injury
The Cavaliers will be without their playmaker at point guard for the second straight game.
Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports
James Dator has been covering a wide range of sports for SB Nation for over a decade, with a special focus on the NFL.
Irving played 27 minutes in the Cavaliers' Game 1 victory over the Hawks, scoring 10 points and registering six assists. Cleveland will turn to Matthew Dellavedova to carry the backcourt along with Iman Shumpert, much as the Cavaliers did in Game 2. Head coach David Blatt is talking up his team's ability to play through adversity:
“Our guys are playing with a lot of grit, just like we have all season.”
Losing Irving hurts the Cavaliers' offensive game, but Dellavedova did an excellent job defending Hawks point guard Jeff Teague in their last matchup. Teague was held to 5-of-16 shooting and was unable to create shots for Atlanta's big men.
Irving reportedly worked out on Saturday ahead of Game 3, but there is no current update on when he’ll be able to return to the court.
See More:
