Cavs’ Kevin Love Expected To Miss The Rest Of The NBA Playoffs

USA Today

The Cleveland Cavaliers received some devastating news following the win over the Boston Celtics in Game 4 of their first-round playoff series. Three-time All-Star Kevin Love suffered a dislocated shoulder as the result of getting tangled up with Kelly Olynyk.

Although the win over the Celtics clinched the series, and has the Cavaliers advancing to the second round to face the Chicago Bulls or Milwaukee Bucks, Cleveland will continue their pursuit to win an NBA title without Love in the lineup. Initially, Love was expected to miss a minimum of a two weeks, but now it appears he’ll be out for the rest of the postseason, according to Cavs general manager David Griffin, via ESPN:

“I think it would be a real surprise if he were able to participate in the postseason,” Griffin said. “I’ve still got a sliver of hope very late, but highly unlikely.”

With Love likely done for the season with a shoulder injury that may require surgery, the Cavaliers suffer a major blow to their chances of competing for an NBA title. The team’s odds to win a championship are currently sitting at 12/5 with the Golden State Warriors favored to win it all at 27/20, according to Sportsbook.ag.

Basically, at this point in time, the Eastern Conference is wide open with the Atlanta Hawks, Washington Wizards, Brooklyn Nets, Bulls and Bucks having a shot to advance to the NBA Finals. The consensus continues to be that Chicago has the best chance of beating the Cavs in a seven-game series, but the odds say different with the Hawks favored over the Bulls (9/2) and just behind Cleveland (5/11) to advance to the Finals at 4/1.

Needless to say, Love’s injury has made things interesting in the East with the Cavaliers no longer a safe bet to cruise into the Finals.