It’s a matter of time before Isaiah Thomas finally suits up for the Cleveland Cavaliers. He’s appeared in uniform on media day. He participated in a team shoot-around before a game last week. And he’s traveled with the team for some time now, but Thomas has yet to play for the Cavaliers since he was traded to the team over the summer.
Thomas has had a long recovery from his hip injury, but his time on the shelf is coming to an end. But it won’t end on Wednesday, and it might not come until 2018. Despite lots of talk about a December return, time is running out on 2017 and the Cavs still haven’t seen Thomas in the lineup.
ESPN’s Dave McMenamin reported from Cavs practice on Wednesday that Thomas won’t be in the lineup against his former team in Sacramento.
https://twitter.com/mcten/status/946080210847285248
That means there’s a chance Thomas will play on Saturday against Utah, and it’s entirely possible that he does. Thomas has bristled at reports that he’s targeting a January return, and that’s his last chance to play in 2017. It seems arbitrary to look at the end of the year and assign some unnecessary importance to a road game against the Jazz, but if he truly wants to get back to the court before 2018, he’s got to play.
The Cavs have been extremely careful with Thomas and his health since acquiring him in the Kyrie Irving trade, so it doesn’t seem like anyone wants to do anything drastic here. But pride can be a fickle beast, and it might play a factor here.
