Is Jarrett Allen playing tonight? Injury report for Cavaliers vs Hornets

The Cleveland Cavaliers are still in Charlotte to play the Hornets again tonight, their second faceoff in the last three nights. After winning a close game on Sunday evening the Cavs hope to have an easier time of it tonight. Will they have their defensive anchor in the lineup?

Jarrett Allen injury update (Updated March 14th)

Note: This will be updated closer to tip-off at 7:00 pm ET with any changes to Jarrett Allen’s injury status.

Jarrett Allen exited the Cavs’ loss to the Miami Heat last week early after taking a blow to the face. He sustained an eye injury that kept him out of the rest of that game and all of the Cavs’ win over the Hornets on Sunday.

While there was some initial optimism that Allen would make it back by tonight, he is currently listed as “out” on the Cavaliers’ injury report:

That doesn’t mean there is no shot for him to play. During the day his status could change, likely moving to questionable if the team decides there is any chance for him to suit up. He will likely sit out the game, but hopefully he is close to returning. He was a part of practice in some capacity yesterday:

This was a bizarre one-off injury, one that doesn’t contribute to any long-term issues. This isn’t the same as spraining an ankle or suffering a bone bruise, which could reoccur down the line. Once the eye heals, Allen should be absolutely fine moving forward.

The tricky decision is at what point the eye has healed enough for Allen to play. Regaining both functionality (no blurriness or trouble focusing) and durability (no increased risk of reinjury) will be key to that timetable. It would certainly help the Cavs if Allen could be available for tomorrow’s game against the Philadelphia 76ers.

Evan Mobley is an elite defender and very competent sliding over to center, but Allen’s absence certainly puts pressure on the frontcourt rotation. On Sunday the extra minutes went to Robin Lopez at center and Lamar Stevens at power forward. If Allen continues to miss time, other bigs like Isaiah Mobley and Mamadi Diakite could get some run.

Allen will most likely miss tonight’s game, but there is always a chance things improve. If not, the game tomorrow is circled in red; if Allen can possibly play tomorrow, he likely will, returning to continue anchoring the league’s best defense from the middle.