According to Cleveland Cavaliers head coach David Blatt, it’s “fair and realistic” to expect Kevin Love in the lineup when the Cavs kick off the regular season against the Chicago Bulls.
Kyrie Irving and his surgically-repaired knee, though? Not so much.
Love has been cleared for 3 on 3. Blatt concedes plan is for Love to be ready for opener, but Kyrie realistically won't be
— Jason Lloyd (@JasonLloydABJ) October 6, 2015
Love won’t play in the two preseason games scheduled this week against the Atlanta Hawks and Philadelphia Sixers.
Per the NEOMG:
Cleveland Cavaliers forward Kevin Love will not play in the team’s two preseason games this week against the Atlanta Hawks on Wednesday and in Philadelphia on Thursday, but the goal remains to have him available for the opener against Chicago on Oct. 27. […] “That would be fair and realistic,” Blatt said Tuesday from Cleveland Clinic Courts.
Blatt has recently said that the recovery schedules are different for Love and Irving, who continues to recover from a fractured kneecap suffered during Game 1 of the NBA Finals. Irving has yet to participate in practice, only doing some light work on the side, and didn’t play during the team’s annual Wine and Gold Scrimmage on Monday night.
“(Love) played three-on-three yesterday and this part of our plan and progression for him to get back on the court to live basketball,” Blatt said. “He has been with us since day one, participating in all the drill work and tactical work that we’ve had. But we’ve taken him out whenever we went live. After this progression, hopefully this weekend we will be able to put him into practice in a normal fashion.”
