The Isaiah Thomas-Kyrie Irving trade is complete, but the drama surrounding Thomas’ hip injury is far from over.
The Cleveland Cavaliers and Boston Celtics finalized the trade that sent Kyrie Irving to the C’s in exchange for Thomas, Jae Crowder, Ante Zizic and the Brooklyn Nets’ 2018 first-round pick Wednesday after Boston agreed to throw in a 2020 second-rounder it obtained from the Miami Heat. The Cavs were concerned about Thomas’ hip, which he injured last season, after the point guard took a physical, and they might’ve had good reason to be.
“No one is willing to put a timeline on when Thomas might return to the court. The fact he isn’t running yet certainly is not a good sign,” The Athletic’s Jason Lloyd wrote Thursday, via WEEI.com. “One source with experience dealing with the type of hip problems Thomas is facing predicted it could be January or even the All-Star break before Thomas returns to game action.”
Of course, the key here is that there’s no timeline. Thomas himself — and friend Jason Terry — downplayed the injury, but there also was a recent report claiming there was a chance the 28-year-old misses the entire season. The All-Star break seems like a happy medium, but in reality, it looks like we won’t know much about Thomas’ injury until the season actually starts.
Thumbnail photo via Brian Spurlock/USA TODAY Sports Images
