Cleveland Cavaliers All-Star point guard Kyrie Irving went down in Sunday’s 102-80 road loss to the LA Clippers. Irving hurt his left biceps on a seemingly innocuous play late in the first quarter, but the injury could reportedly knock him out for the remainder of the season. Per the Plain Dealer:
Irving, the Cavs All-Star point guard, left the game with a left biceps injury late in the first quarter, and he left the arena with his left arm in a sling. He is scheduled to have an MRI on Monday in Cleveland, but two NBA sources indicated the injury could be severe enough to end his season in the worst case scenario.
That would be a blow to the Cavs, 26-41, clinging to their fading playoff hopes in spite of being 4.5 games behind eighth-seeded Atlanta with 15 games left, as well as to Irving, who worked extremely hard last summer in order to prevent the sorts of freak injuries that have plagued him throughout his career.
He has missed just three games this year with a left knee contusion, and even played through a broken nose suffered when he was elbowed by the Timberwolves’ Corey Brewer at Minnesota on Nov. 13.
Unfortunately for him, that wasn’t the case in his first three seasons. Last year, he missed 11 games with a fractured left index finger, three with a hyperextended right knee and a total of nine after suffering a sprained left AC joint. He played through a broken bone in his jaw that was protected by a mask. Before last season, he broke his hand when he slapped a padded wall in frustration during a summer-league practice.
After Sunday’s game, Cavs coach Mike Brown said only that Irving had a biceps injury that would be reevaluated on Monday. The coach said he wasn’t sure how the injury happened, although Fox Sports Ohio replays seemed to indicate Blake Griffin hit the ball while it was in Irving’s hand.
