Cleveland Cavaliers star guard Donovan Mitchell will not play in Sunday’s game against the Charlotte Hornets, but his absence will not be due to injuries. Cleveland has decided to rest the 28-year-old after he played for the Cavaliers in the first fourteen games of the campaign.

The Cavaliers will likely feel Mitchell’s absence against the Hornets given all he has contributed so far this season. Charlotte itself could be very tight, however, with some of its best players either out or in danger of missing the match.

LaMelo Ball and Miles Bridges will be mid-game decisions, and Tre Mann will miss the game.

Hornets head coach Charles Lee says LaMelo Ball and Miles Bridges are the game-time decision. Tre Mann is out for tonight’s game.

— Jackson Flickinger (@JacksFlickinger) November 17, 2024

Cleveland will look to improve to 15-0 and build on its undefeated start to the season, while a win would put the Hornets (currently 5-7) just one win away from .500 at 6-7.

Ball has been one of the driving forces behind the Hornets’ good start to the season, as he has been on a scoring high since the start of the season. He is averaging a career-high 29.6 points per game while shooting 44.0 percent from the field and 36.4 percent from three-point range.

Additionally, he has dropped more than 25 points in each of his last five games against the Hornets. The last time he finished with a point total lower than 25 was when he scored 19 against the Minnesota Timberwolves almost a fortnight ago on November 4.

There’s also an argument that Mann has been the Hornets’ second-best guard so far this season. In a bench role, he is averaging 14.5 points per game on 45.5 percent shooting from the field and 39.2 percent from deep. He also hands out 3.0 assists per game.

Bridges has probably played the most disappointing basketball of the three key players in question. After averaging 21.0 points per game a season ago, he has seen his scoring average drop to 15.1 points per game due to sub-par efficiency as he shoots 40.2 percent from the field and 28.8 percent from three-point range shooting.

Cavaliers fans should keep an eye out for updates on the status of Charlotte’s players leading up to tipoff.