“ If you put me in the same position, do I play? Yes. » So Marcus Morris expressed himself last May to scratch his teammate at the time, Jarrett Allenbelieving that the latter could have done himself to come back sooner and help the Cavs challenge Boston.
But the Cavs pivot, injured in the ribs during the previous round against Orlando, never returned to the field. A few months after this unkind outing, the 26-year-old assures, during “media day”that he “ need a lot more » to be reached.
“ Something that always makes me laugh is that you never understand how serious a rib injury is until it happens to you. I also looked at the others and said to myself that it wasn't that serious. It finally happened to me and I was like, 'Damn, this sucks.' », Reports the interior, whose pain increased each time he tried to raise his arms.
Not possible to sleep well
Difficult in these conditions to fish for rebounds and defend. “ I couldn't sleep properly. You turn around, you wake up with a pain in your side. It's a pain that remains no matter what you try to do. She finally disappeared only two weeks after the end of the season », continues the man who left on the basis of his best career playoffs (17 points and 14 rebounds on average).
In hindsight, Jarrett Allen believes that comments by Marcus Morris or others were ” understandable » due to a lack of awareness of the seriousness of the injury in question, initially described as a simple “ contusion “. But in late May, the Allen saga took a different turn when franchise president Koby Altman spoke of a “rib” broken “.
Would this name have made it possible to avoid derogatory comments?
“ This clearly contributed to the skepticism about the injury. Now that it's out, looking at the scan you can still see the piece of bone floating somewhere in my body, so it was definitely a more serious injury than people thought », assures Jarrett Allen.
Support from Tristan Thompson
He will not have to seek an explanation from Marcus Morris currently looking for a club because he is not retained by the Ohio club. Unlike Tristan Thompson who saw events from another angle.
“ JA held the fort all season. If he could have played, he would have. He played a huge role when Evan (Mobley) and CEO (Darius Garland) were absent. He played like an All-Star. He should have been an All-Star. He's a guy whose desire or desire to play I never questioned », Supports the veteran whose teammate obtained a nice contract extension this summer.
The pivot has also set himself a goal for the coming season: to play all 82 matches for the first time in his career. “ I want to be able to go on the field every game, every night and be with my teammates. I want to prove that I am up to it. » And thus erase all skepticism.
| Jarrett Allen | Percentage | Rebounds | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | MJ | Min | Shots | 3pts | L.F. | Off | Def | Early | Pd | Party | Int | Bp | Ct | Pts |
| 2017-18 | BRK | 72 | 20 | 58.9 | 33.3 | 77.6 | 2.0 | 3.4 | 5.4 | 0.7 | 2.0 | 0.4 | 1.1 | 1.2 | 8.2 |
| 2018-19 | BRK | 80 | 26 | 59.0 | 13.3 | 70.9 | 2.4 | 6.0 | 8.4 | 1.4 | 2.3 | 0.5 | 1.3 | 1.5 | 10.9 |
| 2019-20 | BRK | 70 | 27 | 64.9 | 0.0 | 63.3 | 3.1 | 6.5 | 9.6 | 1.6 | 2.3 | 0.6 | 1.1 | 1.3 | 11.1 |
| 2020-21 * | All Teams | 63 | 30 | 61.8 | 31.6 | 70.3 | 3.1 | 6.9 | 10.0 | 1.7 | 1.5 | 0.5 | 1.6 | 1.4 | 12.8 |
| 2020-21 * | KEY | 51 | 30 | 60.9 | 31.6 | 69.0 | 3.1 | 6.8 | 9.9 | 1.7 | 1.5 | 0.5 | 1.5 | 1.4 | 13.2 |
| 2020-21 * | BRK | 12 | 27 | 67.7 | 0.0 | 75.4 | 3.2 | 7.3 | 10.4 | 1.7 | 1.8 | 0.6 | 1.8 | 1.6 | 11.2 |
| 2021-22 | KEY | 56 | 32 | 67.7 | 10.0 | 70.8 | 3.4 | 7.3 | 10.8 | 1.6 | 1.7 | 0.8 | 1.7 | 1.3 | 16.1 |
| 2022-23 | KEY | 68 | 33 | 64.4 | 10.0 | 73.3 | 3.3 | 6.5 | 9.8 | 1.7 | 2.3 | 0.8 | 1.4 | 1.2 | 14.3 |
| 2023-24 | KEY | 77 | 32 | 63.4 | 0.0 | 74.2 | 3.2 | 7.4 | 10.5 | 2.7 | 1.9 | 0.7 | 1.6 | 1.1 | 16.5 |
| Total | 486 | 28 | 63.0 | 17.1 | 71.1 | 2.9 | 6.3 | 9.1 | 1.6 | 2.0 | 0.6 | 1.4 | 1.3 | 12.7 | |
How to read the stats? MJ = matches played; Min = Minutes; Shots = Successful shots / Attempted shots; 3pts = 3-points / 3-points attempted; LF = free throws made / free throws attempted; Off = offensive rebound; Def=defensive rebound; Tot = Total rebounds; Pd = assists; Fte: Personal fouls; Int = Intercepts; Bp = Lost balls; Ct: Against; Pts = Points.
