James and Irving each scored 41 points to spark Cleveland past Golden State 112-97 Monday to avoid elimination, becoming the first teammates in NBA Finals history to reach 40 points in the same game. The Warriors originally announced during the game that he had suffered a left knee sprain and would not return to Game 5.
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The six-to-eight-week timetable means Bogut will likely be sidelined through July at a minimum.
Having already won an elimination game on the road to push the Warriors to Game 6 of the NBA Finals, the Cavaliers believe they have what it takes to not only take tonight’s contest in front of the home fans, but also, fight through the adversity and doubts from outside of their locker room to win the team’s first-ever league championship.
Bogut underwent a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) test Tuesday morning, but the results were not revealed until a day later. But that is the reality, and in a series where he isn’t a great matchup fit, perhaps it’s the best game plan.
“We’re coming back to our place where we know we play great, and we’re going into it to win the series”. Lynch departed with Green after the Warriors’ Game 5 loss. Bogut blocked five shots in Game 2 of the finals, and the Warriors’ defensive numbers are typically much better when he is on the floor. We just had a couple good things that I wanted to say before the game. Green has played there regularly during the playoffs. So it’s an opportunity for someone else to step up.
During last year’s series, it was a combination of Festus Ezeli and David Lee who stepped up to fill Bogut’s minutes at center. “But give to this team what you can give”.
(AP Photo/Tony Dejak). Cleveland Cavaliers’ Channing Frye, left, and LeBron James share a laugh during practice for Game 6 of the NBA basketball Finals, Wednesday, June 15, 2016, in Cleveland. That leaves Bogut out of action for the end of the Finals for a second straight year and his status for the Summer Olympic Games with Australia in question.
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Bogut averaged just 12 minutes per game in The Finals and saw his playing time decrease in each game. Due to the suspension for accumulating too many flagrant foul points, he said he learned as a player and as a man. He’ll have to apply those lessons immediately because despite his energy, if he commits a flagrant foul in a Game 6 Warriors loss, he will be suspended for Game 7.
