After sustaining injuries during the Western Conference Finals against the San Antonio Spurs, acting head coach Mike Brown assured that starting center Zaza Pachulia and Golden State Warriors sixth man Andre Iguodala are both “ready to go” for tonight's Game 1 against the defending champion Cleveland Cavaliers, according to Anthony Slater of the San Jose Mercury News.
Pachulia suffered a right heel contusion in Game 2, ironically after an infamous negligent closeout that knocked Spurs star forward Kawhi Leonard out for the rest of the postseason during the third quarter of Game 1, aggravating a left ankle injury sustained in the previous round.
Iguodala had been hampered with knee soreness from the start of the conference finals, playing an average of 17 minutes per game after being forced to miss Game 2 in its entirety due to him aggravating the injury during his 10-minute stint in Game 1 against the Spurs.
Both players have enjoyed a plentiful nine-day layoff since their Game 4 series-clinching victory, allowing them to get rest and treatment prior to the finals.
Pachulia is expected to resume duties as the starting center while Iguodala will return to his usual sixth man role, but only the game will indicate if he plays his usual minute-allocation as he's set to defend LeBron James for a third straight year.
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