Jarrett Allen’s status is now one of the biggest questions hanging over Cleveland’s season opener.
The Cavaliers listed their starting center as questionable for Thursday’s game against the Philadelphia 76ers because of right patellar tendinopathy, a knee issue that already has a recent track record. It is the same knee that sidelined Allen for multiple games in the second half of last season.
Cleveland did not rule Allen out, and the designation does not say anything about how long he might be unavailable beyond Thursday. But his presence, or lack of it, changes a frontcourt picture that is already thin.
Nae’Qwan Tomlin and Khalifa Diop are both out, which leaves the Cavaliers short on options if Allen can’t go. The official injury report released at 5 p.m. ET Wednesday listed Allen as questionable, Diop out with a left knee injury management designation, and Tomlin out because of a low back stress reaction.
There was at least one bit of better news elsewhere on the roster. Sam Merrill is not on the injury report after his progress in practice this week. Kenny Atkinson said Tuesday that Merrill completed a full session that included scrimmaging after being limited Monday.
Even with Merrill trending in the right direction, the bigger issue for Cleveland is the interior. Tomlin’s absence matters because Atkinson said he had planned to use him in the rotation, which means the Cavaliers aren’t just replacing an end-of-bench body. They’re trying to fill minutes that were already earmarked.
That leaves Atkinson with a few possible paths if Allen is unavailable. One would be to push Evan Mobley into a bigger center role and sort out the power forward minutes another way. Another would be to lean more heavily on Thomas Bryant.
Bryant gave Cleveland a small sample in the preseason finale at Orlando on Oct. 13, finishing with eight points and four rebounds in 10 minutes. If his role expands, the Cavaliers would need him to shoulder more of the rebounding and interior work that usually comes from Allen and Mobley.
If Mobley slides to center, the challenge shifts elsewhere. The frontcourt minutes around him still have to be covered, and with Diop and Tomlin out, Cleveland has fewer ways to do that.
Thursday’s opener in Philadelphia tips off at 7 p.m. EST on ESPN.
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