Rookie guard Kyrie Irving, who claimed his third consecutive Eastern Conference Rookie of the Month award on Monday, might not play tonight when the Spurs visit Cleveland.
Irving has been slowed by a sprained right shoulder. His injury is among the major reasons the struggling Cavaliers have dropped seven straight games and lost 10 of their last 11.
His absence would be critical for the Cavaliers against the Spurs, who will be gunning for their eighth straight victory at Tuesday’s game.
The Cleveland Plain-Dealer reported that Irving after a no-contact practice while wearing a short-sleeved compression shirt that covered his injury. He leads the Cavaliers and all rookies in scoring (19.9 ppg) and assists (6.7).
Irving was injured in the Cavaliers’ loss to Milwaukee Friday night. He did not play in their most recent game, a 91-75 loss at New York on Saturday night.
If Irving can’t play, who would likely be replaced by rookie guard Donald Sloan, who produced 10 points, seven rebounds and four assists in the loss to the Knicks.
The Spurs have claimed three straight victories over the Cavaliers. Their most recent loss came to them on March 8, 2010, in a game during LeBron James’ last season with the Cavs. James did not play in that game.