Last week, the Cleveland Cavaliers were involved in one of the weirdest controversies in recent memory. J.R. Smith, who never ceases to surprise and delight, earned a one-game suspension for throwing soup at a member of the training staff, which of course sent the internet into a frenzy with a veritable smoldering cauldron of memes.
And just when that was starting to cool, the Cavs threw another scandal du jour into the pot with this story about Jeff Green. The veteran forward has been forced to sit out the last three games for Cleveland as he battles back pain, but that didn’t stop him from going roller skating with the guys on Sunday.
LeBron James posted the video above to his Instagram account, which featured Cavs teammates attending a team-bonding event at a roller rink. Apparently, the organization was aware of Green’s participation and not particularly concerned that he might exacerbate his injury while rolling around on custom Jordan 4 skates., per Joe Vardon of Cleveland.com.
Cavs staff, in talking with cleveland.com, said while the appearance of Green on roller skates at a time when he can’t play because of a back injury is not a great look, the team’s intent was to keep Green out of games for a period of five days to rest his body from the rigors of NBA court battles.
Roller skating should not be equated with the pounding the body takes during a game, they said. Green’s back is improving — he was moving and shooting well during the team’s shootaround this morning.
Green will miss his fourth straight game on Monday night when the Cavs host the visiting Pistons at The Q. Cleveland has dropped their last two games and is looking to gather some momentum for the season’s stretch run as they work to integrate their new players in anticipation of what they hope will be a long playoff run.
