Cavaliers forward Kevin Love was placed in the NBA's concussion protocol Saturday and declared out for Sunday's Game 7 of the Eastern Conference finals against the Boston Celtics.
The 8:30 p.m. game at TD Garden will determine the East's representative in the NBA Finals, which open May 31 at the home of the West champion. The Rockets lead the defending champion Warriors 3-2 going into Saturday's Game 6.
The Cavs have been to three consecutive Finals since LeBron James returned to Cleveland in the summer of 2014.
Cavs coach Tyronn Lue said Love was flying with the team to Boston Saturday afternoon.
Love banged heads with Jayson Tatum with 6:58 left in the second quarter and went to the locker room to be evaluated.
Jeff Green took over for Love and scored 14 points with three rebounds and two assists in 32 minutes. Lue wouldn't say if Green would start in Love's absence.
Love missed a March 28 game at Charlotte this season with a concussion, but that came from a hit in the mouth from the Miami Heat's Jordan Mickey 32 seconds into the game at AmericanAirlines Arena.
In the 2016 Finals, Love was also sidelined with a concussion.
Lue said on the conference call that he was not concerned about James' right leg. James and Larry Nance Jr. banged legs with 8:28 remaining and both fell to the court. James stayed in the game and scored 12 of his 46 points after he was hurt. He said afterward he felt pain in the leg and ankle, but would undergo nearly around-the-clock treatment before Game 7.
