Boston guard Isaiah Thomas will miss the rest of the playoffs because of a hip injury, further damaging — if not outright dooming — the Celtics' chances in the Eastern Conference finals.
The Celtics made the announcement Saturday, a day after Thomas left Game 2 against Cleveland at halftime. The Cavaliers already led by an NBA-record 41 points at that point, and they went on to a 130-86 victory and a 2-0 lead over top-seeded Boston in the best-of-seven series.
The Celtics said Thomas injured the hip in March and aggravated it in Game 6 of the East semifinals against Washington. The swelling increased during the first two games against Cleveland, team doctor Brian McKeon said, and Thomas was limping on the court just before halftime on Friday night.
"Isaiah has worked tirelessly to manage this injury since it first occurred," McKeon said. "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 for Game 3 on Sunday. The Cavaliers could finish off the sweep with two victories in Cleveland.
"He was pretty despondent not to be able to play," Boston coach Brad Stevens said Friday night. "He's a tough guy, and for him to have to sit is really hard."
The 5-foot-8 Thomas emerged as a star this season, averaging nearly 29 points and leading the league in fourth-quarter scoring. Last week, he earned All-NBA second team honors. He scored 23.3 points per game in the postseason.
Kanter detained
Oklahoma City Thunder center Enes Kanter, a Turkish citizen and six-year NBA veteran, found himself in an apparent political tussle that began at a Romanian airport and ended hours later, in London, with Kanter proclaiming on Twitter that he would continue on to New York to hold a news conference Sunday.
