UPDATE: Garland, Mobley and Hunter will all be available for Game 3.
UPDATE: According to ESPN’s Shams Charania, Cleveland Cavaliers point guard Darius Garland expects to play Friday night.
The top seeded Cavaliers shockingly trail the Pacers 2-0, as Cleveland heads to Indiana for Game 3 on Friday. The Cavaliers’ struggles have been the result of some key injuries. Darius Garland (toe) has missed four games in a row, while both Evan Mobley (ankle) and De’Andre Hunter (thumb) missed Game 2 on Tuesday. All three players are questionable for Game 3, per Cavaliers’ head coach Kenny Atkinson.
While Hunter is a bench player, Garland and Mobley are starters and the Cavaliers’ two best players after Donovan Mitchell. Garland averaged 20.6 points and 6.7 assists per game in the regular season, while Mobley had the best season of his career, with 18.5 points, 9.3 rebounds and 1.6 blocks per game. Notably, Mobley is the 2025 Defensive Player of the Year.
Garland apparently practiced last weekend, but he still went onto to miss the next two games, so assessing the guard’s recovery timeline is difficult. Mobley sprained his ankle in the fourth quarter of Game 1 and was able to finish the contest, but then was unable to suit up for Game 2.
Even with the questionable tags, Cleveland is a two-point favorite on DraftKings Sportsbook. If both starters are out, Ty Jerome and Dean Wade will likely start. Plus, Mitchell will handle a large role. He finished with 48 points, nine assists and five rebounds in Game 2. With Garland and Mobley off the floor this season, Mitchell’s usage rises 4.1 percentage points to 35.8%. This season, the Cavaliers are 6-5 with Garland inactive and 6-6 with Mobley inactive, so either of these players remaining out for Game 3 will be a huge loss for Cleveland.
The Cavaliers are +170 underdogs to win the series on DraftKings Sportsbook after falling to a 2-0 deficit.
