CLEVELAND, Ohio (92.3 The Fan) – It’s been a long road to recovery for Cavs forward Lauri Markkanen, there’s no doubt about that.
Finally, after hours of work and weeks of rehab, the end of that road is in sight.
“You just want to be out there to help your teammates,” Markkanen said. “It sucks to not be out there wearing the Cavs’ jersey and be out there because obviously that’s what we love doing.”
Markkanen was injured back on January 22nd against the Oklahoma City Thunder and has missed the last 11 games with a high ankle sprain. The 24-year-old was averaging 13.6 points, 5.3 rebounds per game before going down and was a key player in the Wine and Gold offense.
In truth, the Cavs and Markkanen lucked out after replays showed that Markkanen’s injury initially appeared to be much worse.
Markkanen even admitted as much on Wednesday.
“Obviously, being a basketball player, I rolled my ankle before. I know how it feels, but this felt different,” Markkanen said. “(This injury) hurt more than my previous an ankle sprains, so I thought it's going to be more significant. Then I did the imaging and found out what it was. I mean, it was a relief that I might not miss as much time as I thought I would.”
Markkanen’s status remains up in the air for the Cavs matchup with the Pistons Thursday night, but he’s been able to get some practices under his belt and says his ankle has felt better recently. He's officially listed as "probable" on the Cavs injury report.
Cavs’ coach J.B. Bickerstaff was noncommittal on Markkanen’s return.
Rehabbing an injury is never fun, particularly one as finnicky as a high-ankle sprain. Often, it’s the mental aspect that’s more difficult to overcome than the physical hurdles.
“You want to be out there with your teammates and just can’t be able to do that and sit out, I think that’s the hardest part,” Markkanen said. “I try to stay positive and help my teammates out just without playing and do my part, but. Mean, much rather be out there.”
Prior to the break, the seven-footer spent some time on the Cavs three-game road swing which helped ease the mind and the pain in the ankle subsided.
“This group of guys is great to hang around. So, I was excited to get back on the road with them and just. I think you kind of missed that, too,” Markkanen said. “We love team sports because just it's not just you. It's a lot of other guys involved. “It's a new group of guys. So (we still have to) get to know each other better and do that kind of stuff.”
Markkanen spent several hours every day at the Cavs training facility working his way back. Rehabbing has been a delicate process and there were several days of progress marked by sudden setbacks.
“There were a couple of days that the pain increased from the day before, because obviously we try to push it every day. So there was a couple of frustrating days,” Markkanen said. “
What hasn’t been frustrating for Markkanen has been watching his teammates show out during the 71st NBA All-Star game at Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse over the weekend. If playing the waiting game didn’t have Markkanen anxious enough to return to the lineup, he’s now chomping at the big to get back on the floor.
With the Cavs in locked into the fourth spot in the Eastern Conference standings at 35-23, there’s plenty more to be excited for the rest of the way.
“We always talk about playing meaningful games after the All-Star break, and this definitely (is when) every game matters,” Markkanen said. “I love to (play) with these guys and can't be more excited to get out there after missing four weeks, whatever it's been.”