Celtics Injury Report vs. Cavaliers: Payton Pritchard, Max Strus, and more

The Boston Celtics lost their first game of the NBA Cup, but they will have a chance to get in the win column on Tuesday night when they welcome the Cleveland Cavaliers to town. Boston has won two games in a row, earning victories over the Brooklyn Nets and Toronto Raptors. But the Cavs will pose a much bigger challenge.

Cleveland has been one of the biggest surprises in the league this year. Heading into their matchup with the reigning champions, they are 15-0 on the season. The Celtics and Cavs squared off in the playoffs last year, but Cleveland has clearly improved internally since then.

Here are the injury reports for the Celtics’ NBA Cup game against the Cavaliers on Tuesday, November 19.

Celtics injury report vs. Cavaliers on Tuesday, November 19

• Payton Pritchard QUESTIONABLE (thumb)
• Kristaps Porzingis OUT (posterior tibialis tendon surgery)

Cavaliers injury report vs. Celtics on Tuesday, November 19

• Caris LeVert QUESTIONABLE (knee)
• Isaac Okoro QUESTIONABLE (ankle)
• Max Strus OUT (ankle)
• Dean Wade OUT (ankle)
• Sam Merrill (ankle)
• Emoni Bates (meniscus)

Kristaps Porzingis is still out and likely won’t return until around December as he continues to recover from offseason surgery.

However, the Celtics did just reveal a new update on Porzingis’ recovery plan. According to PR, “Porzingis has reached the next phase in his recovery. As part of his rehab plan, Porzingis and Celtics forward Xavier Tillman will be assigned to practice with the Maine Celtics at the Auerbach Center this afternoon [Monday]. Following this practice, they will be recalled to the Boston Celtics, where Porzingis will continue to ramp up his workload.”

Payton Pritchard has popped up on the injury report for the first time this season. He is dealing with a left thumb sprain.

Despite their overwhelming success this season, the Cavs are dealing with a bunch of injuries.

Caris LeVert will be questionable heading into the game, as he’s dealing with a knee ailment. Isaac Okoro is also questionable due to a knee issue.

Max Strus has been out all season as he continues to deal with an ankle issue. He sprained his ankle right before the start of the season and was initially slated to miss six weeks.

Like Strus, Dean Wade, who had a monster game against the Celtics last season, will also be out on Tuesday night due to an ankle injury.

Sam Merrill and Emoni Bates are both out on Tuesday as well. Merrill is dealing with an ankle issue, and Bates is recovering from surgery to repair a torn meniscus.

Projected starting lineups for Celtics vs. Cavaliers

This is likely what the Celtics will roll with:

• Jrue Holiday
• Derrick White
• Jaylen Brown
• Jayson Tatum
• Al Horford

Here is what the Cavaliers’ first five could look like:

• Darius Garland
• Donovan Mitchell
• Isaac Okoro
• Evan Mobley
• Jarrett Allen