THOMAS READY TO DEBUT FOR THE CAVALIERS
Injury sidelines Rockets’ Harden
Guard has been recovering from a hip injury and hasn’t played since he was traded from Boston to Cleveland in the offseason.
CLEVELAND — The agonizing wait to play again is over for Isaiah Thomas. Vengeance on the Celtics is still on hold.
Thomas, sidelined with a hip injury since last season’s Eastern Conference finals, will make his debut for the Cleveland Cavaliers tonight against the Portland Trail Blazers.
After months of rehab, the All-Star point guard will take the floor for the first time with the Cavaliers, who acquired him last summer in the blockbuster trade that sent Kyrie Irving to the Celtics.
“It’s been a long process for me,” Thomas said Monday following practice. “It’s been a frustrating and tough process, but at the same time you got to trust it. I just attacked it every day to try to get better and now that day is here. I haven’t played in so long, so man it’s going to be a weird feeling tomorrow, but I’m happy it’s here.”
Coach Tyronn Lue said Thomas will come off the bench and initially will play limited minutes. Also, he will not play in back-to-back games as he builds up strength, which means he won’t face the Celtics on Wednesday night in Boston.
Thomas was deeply hurt by Boston’s decision to trade him, and he would like nothing more than to show his former team what it gave up. However, he knows the smarter move is to put his health first.
“It won’t be that tough,” he said about sitting out the second meeting this season between the rivals. “I know where I am right now and I wouldn’t want to put myself out there to just try to force it. But I can wait until February. We play them in February again, so I can wait and put on a show then.”
The Cavaliers and Celtics will square off on Feb. 11.
ROCKETS: Star guard James Harden will miss at least two weeks with a grade 2 left hamstring strain.
Harden was injured on a missed layup late in the fourth quarter of Houston’s 148-142 double-overtime win against the Los Angeles Lakers on Sunday night. He leads the NBA in scoring at 32.3 points per game and ranks third in assists, averaging 9.1.
Harden, who has played every game this season, has missed just two games since the start of the 2014-15 season.
Monday
RAPTORS 131, BUCKS 127, OT: In Toronto, DeMar DeRozan scored a franchise-record 52 points, and the Raptors beat Milwaukee, matching the team record with their 12th consecutive home victory.
Eric Bledsoe scored 29 points for the Bucks. TRAIL BLAZERS 124, BULLS
120, OT: In Chicago, Portland guard C.J. McCollum scored 25 of his 32 points after halftime, including the tiebreaking basket with 56.5 seconds remaining in overtime.
Al-Farouq Aminu added a season-high 24 points for Portland. Kris Dunn scored 22 points for Chicago. TIMBERWOLVES 114, LAKERS 96: In Minneapolis, Jimmy Butler scored 28 points, and Minnesota won for the seventh time in eight games.
Karl-Anthony Towns recorded his 30th double-double of the season with 16 points and 13 rebounds for the Timberwolves. The Lakers have lost seven in a row and 10 of 11.
NETS 98, MAGIC 95: In New York, Rookie Jarrett Allen had a career-high 16 points for Brooklyn, and Allen Crabbe added 15 points and blocked a potential tying shot.
Aaron Gordon had 20 points and 12 rebounds for Orlando.