Already in a 1-0 series hole, the Cleveland Cavaliers will be very shorthanded against the lower-seeded Indiana Pacers on Tuesday night.
Per Shams Charania of ESPN, three of Cleveland’s top six players will miss the Allcritical home matchup in the ongoing best-of-seven series.
Cleveland Cavaliers Evan Mobley, Darius Garland and De’Andre Hunter are all out tonight in Game 2 against the Indiana Pacers due to injuries.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) May 6, 2025
All-Stars Darius Garland and Evan Mobley will both be on the shelf, as will critical reserve forward De’Andre Hunter.
Jason Miller/Getty Images
Garland, 25, will miss his fourth consecutive contest with a big toe sprain. As physical therapist Dr. Evan Jeffries writes, the ailment often costs players multiple weeks. In fairness, Garland hasn’t played since a 121-112 Game 2 victory against the Miami Heat on April 23.
In that Heat game, he scored 21 points on 6-of-14 shooting from the floor (2-of-8 from 3-point land) and 7-of-8 shooting from the foul line, while also racking up nine assists and two boards.
Very major concerns with the Cavs moving forward
Darius Garland: Big toe sprain (typically multi-week absence)
Evan Mobley: Ankle sprain (grade I is typically 1-2 weeks)
De’Andre Hunter: Right thumb dislocation (typically multi week absence) especially shooting thumb
— Dr. Evan Jeffries, DPT (@GameInjuryDoc) May 6, 2025
By sweeping Miami, Garland had extra time to rest up prior to this second-round clash with Indiana. It still didn’t expedite his return to action.
Mobley sprained his ankle when he landed on the foot of 3-and-D Indiana center Myles Turner during Game 1, a surprise 121-112 Pacers road upset. Per Jeffries, Turner could also miss one to two weeks. This series won’t last any longer than that, even if it extends to seven games.
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Hunter dislocated the thumb in his right shooting hand. As Jeffries observes, such an ailment often costs its players a few weeks.
Cleveland has announced its starting five for the contest.
Reserve guard Ty Jerome and backup power forward Dean Wade will start in the stead of Garland and Mobley, respectively. They’ll join Cleveland’s last remaining healthy All-Star, shooting guard Donovan Mitchell, small forward Max Strus, and one-time All-Star center Jarrett Allen in newly-minted Coach of the Year Kenny Atkinson’s fresh starting five.
With the series slated to shift to Indiana for Games 3 and 4, this contest represents close to a must-win for the Cavaliers, who wrapped up the 2024-25 regular season with a sparkling 64-18 record and the Eastern Conference’s No. 1 seed.
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The Pacers, meanwhile, are hoping to capitalize on some injury luck in what has been an impressively physical series so far. Indiana won thanks to a balanced pace-and-space attack, going 19-of-36 on their long-range takes (5.28 percent).
Cleveland went just 9-of-38 from deep. Beyond Turner and All-Stars Tyrese Haliburton and Pascal Siakam, Indiana’s wing depth comported itself particularly well on both sides of the ball.
Game 2 tips off at 7 p.m. ET on Tuesday night.
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