Cavs guard Matthew Dellavedova has had a key impact on the NBA Finals so far, helping LeBron James lead the Cavs to a 2-1 lead. But after being hospitalized for dehydration following the Cavaliers’ Game 3 victory—a game in which he dropped 20 points—Delly is forgoing his normal pre-game routine of drinking a cup of coffee. Yes, apparently Delly has a pre-game ritual that involves coffee to rev himself up right before tip-off. We do not advise this, kids.
From ESPN.com‘s Dave McMenamin:
Matthew Dellavedova will be in the lineup for Game 4 of The Finals, but after suffering from dehydration in Game 3, he won’t be sticking to one of his tried-and-true pregame rituals.
The Cleveland Cavaliers starting point guard will eschew his tradition of his pregame — and sometimes halftime — cup of joe.
“There will be no coffee tonight,” Dellavedova said after Cavs shootaround Thursday. “It’s not a good thing, probably, for your hydration.”
Dellavedova’s coffee kick is so ingrained in the Cavs’ team fabric that, on occasion, injured center Anderson Varejao will go fetch him a cup and bring it to him in the locker room before tipoff.
However, Dellavedova said that he’s exerting himself too much these days to risk the caffeinated beverage. Dellavedova had to be taken by ambulance to the Cleveland Clinic following Tuesday’s win over the Golden State Warriors to receive an IV and additional treatment and has been on a regimented diet, massage, hydration and stretching program since.
