Report: Cavs' Shumpert enters concussion protocol after head injury

Only one thing went wrong for the Cleveland Cavaliers during a magical opening night of the NBA season that saw the pick up their 2016 championship rings and roast the visiting New York Knicks. Swingman Iman Shumpert went down in a heap late in the third quarter after colliding with Knicks big man Kristaps Porzingis, exiting the game with what the Cavs later described as concussion-like symptoms:

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Shumpert finished with two points on 1-for-3 shooting, three assists, two rebounds and one block in 14 minutes of playing time before going down. While the Cavs said he wouldn’t return due to the symptoms he displayed as he wobbled his way off the court and into the locker room, the team also made it clear that Shumpert had not yet been placed in the league’s concussion protocol.

“Right now we don’t know the status on Shump,” Cavaliers head coach Tyronn Lue said after the game, according to ESPN’s Dave McMenamin. “Still going to go through the testing or whatever. I know he got hit in the head, and I think he ran into Porzingis’ hip or something. He’s going to get tested and just see where he’s at. Not quite sure what the results are going to be.”

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While Shumpert sought to downplay the injury post-game — “I’ll live,” he told McMenamin — his status evidently changed after the opening-night victory, according to Joe Vardon of Cleveland.com:

Cavs fans are likely familiar with the league’s concussion protocol after power forward Kevin Love entered it during the 2016 NBA Finals, missing Game 3 of that series after taking an elbow to the head from then-Golden State Warriors forward Harrison Barnes. The policy stipulates that players not be allowed to return on the day they suffer a concussion or the day afterward; that their “physical and cognitive exertion [should be] limited as much as possible”; that they be “regularly monitored for 24 hours for the evolution of symptoms,” not allowed to begin the “return-to-participation exertion protocol” until 24 hours after injury; and that they be prevented from returning to full participation until after:

1. Being without concussion-related symptoms at rest;

2. Being evaluated by a physician;

3. Successfully completing the NBA return-to-participation exertion protocol, which involves several steps of increasing exertion: from riding a stationary bike, to jogging, to agility work, to non-contact team drills, with players needing to be symptom-free to move on to the next step;

4. A team physician has discussed the return-to-participation process and decision with the Director of the NBA Concussion Program, Dr. Jeffrey Kutcher, with the final call coming from the Cavs’ physician.

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Shumpert tweeted Wednesday morning that he was set to undergo testing and that he hoped it would clear him of any lingering effects, allowing him to return to the court ASAP:

If he can’t, though, the Cavs could have a bit of a problem on their hands.

See, after losing Matthew Dellavedova to the Milwaukee Bucks and Mo Williams to retirement (we think?) during the offseason, the Cavs entered the season perilously thin behind star Kyrie Irving at the point guard spot. Second-round pick Kay Felder (dubbed “the most exciting player you may not have watched [last] season” by The Dagger’s Jeff Eisenberg) was the only other point guard on the roster, and while he has the scoring touch and playmaking panache to be able to overcome his 5-foot-9 stature and make an impact on the NBA level, neither Lue nor general manager David Griffin seemed to want to hand the primary backup job to a rookie right away … and that was before Felder landed in the concussion protocol himself, thanks to a stray elbow in practice from big man Chris “Birdman” Andersen.

As a result, Shumpert — whom the Knicks drafted out of Georgia Tech as a combo guard back in 2011 — was serving as Cleveland’s backup point guard on Tuesday. After he collided with Shumpert, fellow journeyman wing DeAndre Liggins took the reins, playing the entire fourth quarter against the Knicks and piling up four points, three rebounds and three assists in garbage time.

According to Vardon, the Cavs expect Felder to be ready to return to the court in time for this weekend; if neither nor Shumpert can, though, Lue will have to rely more heavily on either the relatively untested Liggins or give more early-season minutes than he might prefer to top ball-handlers Irving and LeBron James. Luckily, there are worse Plan Cs to have; those two guys are pretty good, after all.

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Dan Devine is an editor for Ball Don’t Lie on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at devine@yahoo-inc.com or follow him on Twitter!

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