Jacob Sisneros
2 min read • April 15, 2023
Posted in
New York’s chances in this series hinge on the health of Julius Randle’s left ankle. The two-time All-Star missed the last five games of the regular season after suffering the injury on March 29.
Recently, our panel of doctors detailed his outlook for the beginning of the playoffs. Given his history of previous left ankle sprains, this recent injury likely did not cause much new damage.
However, Randle has had just over two weeks to rest and will have trouble cutting and changing direction on his injured ankle.
Outside of Randle, the Knicks are without Isaiah Roby but the former Spur has not appeared in a game for the Knicks this season.
Third-year forward Obi Toppin played heavy minutes in Randle’s absence, which could be a silver-lining heading into a tight playoff series.
Toppin averages 22 points, 3.2 rebounds and 3.4 assists over the final five regular season games.
The lone Cavs injury to track is to third-year swingman Isaac Okoro. He’s listed as questionable for Game 1 with left knee soreness that caused him to miss the final six games of the season.
Okoro played in the other 76 games, a good sign that he is not dealing with a long-term issue.
By video, Okoro appeared to bump knees while trying to avoid a screen on March 26. He returned briefly wearing a knee brace, but was not moving well and was subbed out shortly after.
If he’s available for Game 1 he will likely play less than his average of 21.7 minutes per game.
Okoro has also been an important part of a Cavs defense that allowed just 106.9 points per game during the regular season – ranking first in the league.
The Knicks are +152 to win the series over the Cavs and are 5.5-point underdogs on the road for Game 1, according to FanDuel Sportsbook.
New York is at +10000 to win the NBA Finals, while Cleveland is at +4600.
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Written by Jacob Sisneros
