Cavs catch break with Knicks' Julius Randle likely to miss tonight's game

INDEPENDENCE — The Cavaliers caught a major break in tonight's game against the New York Knicks. All-Star forward Julius Randle sprained his left ankle in the Miami game Wednesday and will be re-evaluated in two weeks, which might wipe out the rest of the regular season. That injury has taken on more importance since the Cavs and Knicks are favored to face off in the first round of the Eastern Conference playoffs, which are expected to start no earlier than April 15. The 6-foot-8, 250-pound Randle is averaging a team-high 25.1 points, 10 rebounds and 4.1 assists in 77 games. He is almost certain to miss his first game of the season tonight at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse. It's still uncertain whether Cavs center Jarrett Allen will play. He missed the Atlanta game Tuesday with a groin injury and coach J.B. Bickerstaff said he participated in some of Thursday's practice. Guard Raul Neto and forward Dean Wade will be eligible to play, but swingman Isaac Okoro will miss his second game in a row due to left knee soreness. Guard Donovan Mitchell turned his ankle in the Atlanta game but will start against the Knicks. Bickerstaff said the New York game will likely carry more weight for the players. "I can give you all the coachspeak you can handle, but from both sides there's an understanding of the moment," he said. "The greatest players, the greatest teams, they always understand the moment. They can raise themselves to that. This is a great opportunity for our guys. Not many of them have been in these situations." Cavs guard Darius Garland said the players are well aware it could be a preview of the first round of the playoffs. "We know it's a big one, especially for seeding purposes," he said. "So we'll want to come out aggressive. We know what we have to do to turn it up and be ready to fight physically. We do know the importance of it. We know what we're going into." Forward Lamar Stevens said the last five games are important to the Cavs (48-29). "We want to continue to build our togetherness and chemistry," he said. "You don't just flip that switch during the playoffs. We want to play every game like it's super important." Stevens said facing the Knicks (44-33) holds more importance. "We're locked in," he said. "That's something we're all aware of. We're definitely locked in on this matchup. We're preparing for it like it's the playoffs. We're excited about it." Stevens could match up with Knicks forward Josh Hart, who could move into Randle's starting spot at power forward. Hart has played well since being traded from Portland. "He's just relentless," he said. "He's a very physical player. Guys don't like that physicality. He goes hard to the paint. He's strong. He attacks that offensive glass." Contact Bob Finnan at rfinnan30@gmail.com. Follow him @BobCavsinsider on Twitter.