CLEVELAND (AP) 鈥� Donovan Mitchell's left knee injury might keep the All-Star guard out longer than the Cavaliers initially estimated.
Coach J.B. Bickerstaff provided some clarity about Mitchell's injury 鈥� deemed a bone bruise by the team 鈥� on Tuesday night, saying it had built up over time. Mitchell, who leads Cleveland in scoring and led the team through a tough stretch of injuries, will miss at least three games.
Bickerstaff indicated Mitchell could be out more than that.
鈥淚 expect him to be back before a month,鈥� Bickerstaff said before the Cavs hosted the Eastern Conference-leading Boston Celtics, who have won 11 straight games. "I don鈥檛 like to overstep my bounds, but at the end of the three games, they鈥檒l reevaluate and then we鈥檒l make a decision from there.
鈥淚'm hopeful and do not expect this to be a long break, but we will always do what鈥檚 best by our guys to make sure they鈥檙e healthy.鈥�
Mitchell leads the Cavs in scoring (28.0 points per game) and is putting up career-best numbers in rebounds, assists and steals during his second season with Cleveland. The 27-year-old carried the Cavs while Darius Garland (broken jaw) and Evan Mobley (knee surgery) were out six weeks with injuries.
While the team said Mitchell has a bone bruise, Bickerstaff indicated the injury developed over several weeks.
鈥淚t鈥檚 more of a wear and tear thing,鈥� Bickerstaff said. 鈥淚t was like a tendinitis-type thing that kind of just flared up. So it鈥檚 not something that just happened, but something that just built over time.鈥�
The Cavs are hoping a platelet-rich plasma injection Mitchell received on Monday will speed up his return.
Until then, Cleveland, which is currently No. 3 in the East, will have to cope without its best player and leader.
鈥淵ou're always obviously concerned, but we鈥檙e confident and these next steps would be the steps that are necessary,鈥� Bickerstaff said. 鈥淚t was one of those things where he was trying to play through it, but he just was hampered and you could see he couldn鈥檛 explode.
鈥淗e couldn鈥檛 move going certain directions because of the pain and how it was limited. I鈥檓 not a doctor, but from everything that I鈥檓 hearing, the time, the rest and the process should get him back to full strength.鈥�
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AP NBA:
Tom Withers, The Associated Press
