INDEPENDENCE, Ohio -- David Nwaba, who has been at the center of the Cleveland Cavaliers' two-game winning streak, will miss Monday night's game against the Minnesota Timberwolves because of soreness in his right knee.
Nwaba, a starter the last three games, will miss his fourth game of the season and first with an injury.
Signed this summer because of his defensive reputation, Nwaba has become the team's primary stopper against the opponent's best perimeter scorer, holding James Harden to 4-15 from the field when matched up against him Saturday night.
Nwaba will join Sam Dekker and George Hill on the sidelines Monday. Both Hill and Dekker are getting closer to a return, but not yet ready.
With Nwaba out, Larry Nance Jr. is expected to move back into the starting lineup against the bulky Wolves that use a frontcourt featuring Karl-Anthony Towns and Taj Gibson.
Nwaba is averaging 6.1 points and 2.7 rebounds in 17.4 minutes.
The timing of this isn't ideal for Cleveland. Following Monday's matchup against Minnesota, the Cavs will see a handful of talented wings, including Oklahoma City's Paul George, Boston's Jayson Tatum and Gordon Hayward and Toronto's Kawhi Leonard.
