The Golden State Warriors will reportedly be without starting center Andrew Bogut for the remainder of the Finals, however long that might last.
Bogut injured his knee in a scary fall during the Warriors’ loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers back in Game 5.
While Bogut isn’t expected to require surgery on the sprained knee, he will miss the remainder of the Finals due to the injury.
Hearing Andrew Bogut will not require surgery, but projected recovery time will take him out for rest of Finals.
— David Aldridge (@davidaldridgedc) June 15, 2016
This is a somewhat major blow for the Warriors as they look to close out the Cavaliers in Game 6 in Cleveland on Thursday.
The stats might not tell us the entire story here (4.6 points, 5.7 rebounds in the playoffs). Instead, it’s all about his defensive presence on the inside and his ability to act as an elite-level passing center on offense.
Remember, Bogut was benched in favor of Andre Iguodala in last year’s Finals with Golden State defeating Cleveland in all three games that he sat. Though, it’s important to note that Cleveland was without both Kevin Love and Kyrie Irving in that series.
With Bogut sidelined, the expectation here has to be that Golden State will again turn to a small-ball lineup with Iggy starting out of the gate. There’s also a chance the defending champs will promote backup center Festus Ezeli to a starting role.
Golden State leads the series 3-2 and has an opportunity to close out the Cavaliers in Cleveland on Thursday.
Missing Bogut could play a somewhat major role in the outcome, especially with LeBron James ridiculous success driving the ball thus far in the series.