Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley show up on injury report for Friday’s game

The Cavaliers could be without both of their bigs in their NBA Cup debut.

The Cleveland Cavaliers start their bid for the NBA Cup on Friday as they host the Chicago Bulls for their first group-play game. There’s an outside chance that they could be without one or both of their bigs as Jarrett Allen (lower leg strain) and Evan Mobley (illness) are listed on the injury report as probable for Friday’s game.

Jarrett Allen was questionable for Wednesday’s matchup against the Philadelphia 76ers with a left leg strain but played through it. He had a bounce-back game from his previous two outings as he finished with 11 points on 5-8 shooting with 12 rebounds. It wasn’t his best performance, but it was a step in the right direction. Allen is averaging 13.3 points and 10.7 rebounds per game.

Evan Mobley did not have the level of aggression we’ve come to expect this season in the win against Philadelphia. He had season lows in shot attempts while accumulating four turnovers. From afar, it appeared that he didn’t have it. Showing up on the injury report with an illness a day later isn’t too surprising. Mobley is averaging 17.8 points and 8.6 rebounds per game this season.

The Cavs will likely have both bigs in Friday’s game, but they probably won’t be at 100%. They will need Darius Garland and Donovan Mitchell to continue to step up if they want to have a strong first showing in the NBA Cup.

Cleveland will be without Sam Merrill (left ankle) once again. He missed the game against the 76ers with the same injury.

Friday’s game against Chicago tips off at 7:30 PM.