Evan Mobley makes a quick return from a calf strain to rejoin the Cavaliers in loss on Christmas

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NEW YORK (AP) — Evan Mobley was back on the floor for the Cleveland Cavaliers against New York on Thursday, returning from a strained left calf in less than two weeks after it was originally feared he could miss twice that.

The Cavaliers said the reigning NBA Defensive Player of the Year would miss two to four weeks after he sustained a Grade 1 strain of the calf on Dec. 12. Instead, he missed only five games before providing a big Christmas boost to Cleveland.

Mobley finished with 14 points and nine rebounds in 25 minutes of the Cavaliers' 126-124 loss.

“We wanted to play it right, not rush back or anything, so I think we definitely did play it right,” Mobley said. “From the day it happened it was a solid two weeks of healing time, so I think it was enough time to heal and I felt great out there tonight.”

Coach Kenny Atkinson said Mobley had progressed in recent days to playing 3-on-3 and 4-on-4 in practices, then worked out Thursday morning before the Cavaliers upgraded him from questionable to available to play.

“One thing about Evan I’ve learned, he heals pretty quick,” Atkinson said before the game. “Like, he’s 23. Sometimes age is a factor in these things.”

Mobley was not in the starting lineup, joining players such as Victor Wembanyama and Zion Williamson in coming off the bench in recent games after returning from their injuries.

With Mobley coming back right after Sam Merrill returned to play the last three games after missing 14 with a sprained right hand, the Cavaliers were upbeat afterward despite blowing a 17-point lead in the fourth quarter. All-Star Donovan Mitchell said the Cavaliers played 43 of their best minutes of the season during the game.

Cleveland has dealt with injuries during a 17-15 start after winning 64 games last season. So Atkinson said he was choosing to remain positive, believing the Cavaliers would keep getting better as they got healthier. They had won two in a row coming into New York.

He said he was hoping the Cavaliers were beginning an upward trend, and having Mobley would certainly help. Mobley, who came in averaging a career-high 19.1 points per game and adding 9.3 rebounds per game, also spoke positively after the game.

“We just got two wins before this, and they were pretty good wins. So, we’re playing the right brand of basketball, and then tonight, same thing," the power forward said. "We played pretty good overall, but we just can’t have that stint where that happens and where they hit those 3s, but overall, I feel like we’re heading in the right direction. It would have been great to get a win on top of it and really push in the right direction, but overall, I feel like we’re playing good basketball.”

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