The Cleveland Cavaliers announced that rookie Dylan Windler will miss the next 4-6 weeks with a lower leg injury according to an official press release. The release says the injury occurred in regular team workouts.
In an assessment from the Cavs’ Cleveland Clinic doctors, a left tibial stress reaction was found. Windler is expected to miss the start of the preseason, which starts October 7th. Given the timetable from the Cavaliers, it appears the 23-year-old forward and 26th overall pick in the 2019 NBA Draft will miss a week or two of the regular season. Cleveland opens the season October 23rd.
Chris Fedor of cleveland.com reports that the Cavs are “not overly concerned” and that the injury just needs time to calm down.
This injury essentially undoes all of the work Windler gained in the NBA Summer League, where he was the only Cavs first round pick to play. Both Darius Garland and Kevin Porter Jr. both sat out with injuries while Windler played – and displayed his impressive shooting range.
Windler averaged 21.3 points and 10.8 rebounds per game as a senior for the Belmont Bruins and figured to get some minutes at either of the forward positions. Instead, Porter Jr. may get some extra run at small forward and start the push for minutes. The setback for Dylan Windler is disappointing, but the Cavs do have more young players to plug in and play.
