An NBA injury report doesn’t always tell the entire story. Words like “load management,” “gastroenteritis,” and a personal favorite, “day-to-day,” often become fodder on social media.
For clarity sake, we are all managing whatever load we are carrying, sometimes we get stomach aches, and in the immortal words of the legendary Vin Scully, “Aren’t we all day-to-day?”
When an NBA injury report says, “Not with team - personal reasons,” that is often not a good sign.
After beating the Cleveland Cavaliers on Thursday evening at Golden 1 Center, Willie Cauley-Stein was in the Kings' locker room with his teammates. When the Kings hopped a late-night flight to Utah for Friday’s back-to-back, Cauley-Stein did not make the team charter.
Cauley-Stein has been embroiled in a minor controversy over the last few days regarding a statement he made that was misinterpreted by a local Sacramento reporter following the team’s loss to the Rockets on Tuesday.
According to a league source, his absence has nothing to do with that situation. He is away from the team due to a serious family issue and will miss his first game of the season after starting the first 79 contests for Sacramento.
Like most NBA franchises, the Kings allow their players to decide if they want to go public with private matters or keep them in-house.
This is life in the NBA. Players are not just players, they are people. While Cauley-Stein the player can be a point of contention for some Kings fans. Willie Cauley-Stein the person, as well as his family, could use some positive thoughts.
There is no word as to when Cauley-Stein will rejoin the team. Following Friday’s game in Utah, the Kings don’t play again until Sunday at home against the Pelicans. They finish the 2018-19 schedule Wednesday in Portland against the Trail Blazers.
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