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Kevin Love will be forced to miss Game 3 as he tries to work his way back from a concussion sustained in Game 2. Love, who sustained the injury on an inadvertent Harrison Barnes shot to the head, tried to convince the doctors that he was fit to play, but to no avail. The earliest we'll see him could be in Game 4.
And there it is from @ESPNSteinLine: no Kevin Love tonight for the #Cavaliers. pic.twitter.com/TtyhnHIj78
— Rachel Nichols (@Rachel__Nichols) June 8, 2016
Here is video of the play where Love was injured:
In the moment, as Kevin Love writhed on the floor, it seemed like a serious injury. However, he got up, was quickly cleared by team doctors, and returned to action. He played the rest of the second quarter, but then, a few minutes into the third, he started feeling dizzy and had to be escorted off of the court. Back in the training room, they officially diagnosed him with a concussion, and he entered in the league-mandated concussion protocol series of tests.
He was not able to clear all necessary hurdles, and so will be unavailable in tonight's game.
It's been a tough series for the Cavaliers' forward. Even before the injury, he was not playing at his peak level. The Warriors have attacked his shoddy defense from the tip of Game 1. The threat of his outside shooting has been largely negated by the Warriors' athletic defenders who have been able to recover and challenge his shot on the perimeter.
In his place, we might potentially see Richard Jefferson slide into the starting lineup. It's been reported that he's been practicing with the Cavs' first team.
Interested to see what Ty Lue does. Richard Jefferson's been working out with the first team during the parts of practice open to the media.
— Rachel Nichols (@Rachel__Nichols) June 8, 2016
But, really, can that possibly be an answer for the Cavaliers as they look to right the ship on their home court? Richard Jefferson has been playing solid basketball, sure, but... Yeah. That's tough.
I don’t know what kind of a world we live in where a team that starts Richard Jefferson in an NBA Finals has a shot to win it
— BBALLBREAKDOWN (@bballbreakdown) June 8, 2016
Time will tell how the Cavaliers try and change the course of this series, shorthanded as they will be for Game 3. Will we see more Timofey Mozgov? Will Channing Frye start shooting fire on his home court? Do the Cavs stand a chance against a balanced, hungry, and vastly superior Warriors team?
Game 3, tonight, 6pm PT on ABC.