At halftime of game two in the 2017 Eastern Conference Finals between the Boston Celtics and Cleveland Cavaliers, the visiting Cavs led the C’s by 41 which is the worst halftime deficit in NBA postseason history. Not only did the C’s lose game two but they also lost their All-Star point guard, Isaiah Thomas.
Thomas left the game with a hip injury, something Celtics head coach says Thomas has been dealing with since game six against the Washington Wizards.
At the time they didn’t know what was next but just under 24 hours later, the results have returned. Thomas will miss the remainder of the postseason with a hip injury.
Following from an official release by the Celtics.
The Boston Celtics today announced that Isaiah Thomas will miss the remainder of this year’s postseason following re-aggravation of a right femoral-acetabular impingement with labral tear during Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Finals against Cleveland. Thomas initially injured the hip during the third quarter of the Celtics’ March 15 game against Minnesota, forcing him to miss the next two regular season contests. The injury was further aggravated during Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals at Washington on May 12.
“Isaiah has worked tirelessly to manage this injury since it first occurred,” said Celtics Chief Medical Officer Dr. Brian McKeon. “The swelling increased during the first two games against Cleveland, and in order to avoid more significant long-term damage to his hip, we could no longer allow him to continue.”
Thomas did not travel with the team to Cleveland and is currently evaluating treatment options. A further update will be provided as soon as one is available.
This is the second straight series in which an All-Star point guard saw their series against the Cleveland Cavaliers come to an end due to an injury. Kyle Lowry was shut down after suffering an ankle injury in round two.
Thomas’ spectacular season comes to an end a little earlier than he’d hope it would go. The juggernaut Cavaliers held Thomas to 19 total points in 56 minutes of play between games one and two combined. Thomas scored two points and went 0-6 from the field in game two before he left the game for good.
He had some sensational moments all playoffs long but possibly the most emotional point of his postseason came right at the start of the 2017 NBA Playoffs when it was learned his sister died before game one of the first round. Thomas battled through the emotions and family concerns to play all six games in the first round against the Chicago Bulls.
Legendary season by @Isaiah_Thomas ??With the personal tragedy and injuries he's overcome, getting through game 7 was heroic#thelittleguy
— Danny Ainge (@danielrainge) May 20, 2017
