Kyrie Irving will play Monday night against the Suns, but he won't be playing the second of a back-to-back Tuesday against the Nuggets.
The Cavaliers' All-Star point guard is OK with that arrangement for now, but he hopes it won't be the case much longer.
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"I'm playing (Monday). I'm going to do the same thing getting ready for the game mentally and physically and then sit out in Denver again," Irving told reporters Monday . "So that will be the last time I sit out in back-to-backs and the last two games, hopefully, I'll miss for the rest of the season."
Irving is in the early stages of coming back from a fractured kneecap he suffered in the NBA Finals. Three games into his return, he's averaging 10 points and 3.3 assists in 20.7 minutes.
"For me, I just manage it by just being accepting of what's going on out there and knowing that the hard work that I'm putting in will turn into something," Irving said. "Soon. Hopefully soon. But my work ethic and what I do on the off-days and coming in to get prepared for games now, it won't change. I'll have the same mindset.
"For me, it's just about knocking off that rust and having that confidence to still be able to attack the rim and get the shots I want."