The Cleveland Cavaliers haven’t reached out to the Boston Celtics since they expressed concern about isaiah thomas’ injured hip last week. There were reports that the Cavaliers want more in exchange for Kyrie Irving due to Thomas’ condition, but the Celtics are in the dark because Cleveland hasn’t contacted them yet about specifics, according to Mark Murphy of the Boston Herald. Due to the lack of contact, Murphy reported that the Celtics have no alternative plan in place. Also, the Celtics have no plan to add another asset to finalize the trade.
The Cavaliers, for their part, have made no alternative demand to the Celtics, Murphy said. The Cavaliers have until Thursday to void the deal or the two sides can agree to extend the deadline as they explore ways to come up with a win-win situation from the deal.
Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN reported that the Cavaliers are eyeing second-year player Jaylen Brown or rookie Jayson Tatum, who were both picked No. 3 by the Celtics in the past two NBA Drafts. The Cavaliers initially targeted one of the two during initial trade discussions but the Celtics refused to budge. The Cavaliers are eyeing either Brown or Tatum as building block if ever LeBron James pushes through with his reported plan to leave Cleveland in 2018.
Cavs concerned about Thomas’ hip injury
Earlier, the Celtics shipped Thomas, Jae Crowder, Ante Zizic, and the Brooklyn Nets’ 2018 first-round pick to the Cavaliers for Irving. However, the trade hit a snag after Thomas underwent a physical in Cleveland on Friday. The Cavaliers raised concerns about Thomas’ injured hip, which could sideline the All-Star point guard longer than originally anticipated.
The injury caused Thomas to miss the 3 ½ games of the Eastern Conference Finals, allowing the Cavaliers to cruise to the NBA Finals. However, Thomas did not undergo surgery and opted to rest and rehabilitate his injured hip.
Celtics transparent about Thomas’ hip injury
The Celtics believe that they have been very transparent when it comes to Thomas’ injury while working on the deal for Irving.
The Celtics medical staff was in constant communication and have exchanged information about the injury with their Cavaliers counterpart heading into the Aug. 22 trade. When asked about Thomas’ injury after the trade, Celtics general manager Danny Ainge said it was considered in making their decision to include the point guard in the trade package for Irving. Ainge said he expects the injury to delay Thomas’ debut but assured everything will be fine as the season goes along.
