Ingram, with a walking boot protecting his injured right heel, at shoot around the morning of Game 7.
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Toronto Raptors star Brandon Ingram is a big question mark for Game 7, as the Cleveland Cavaliers await.
Brandon Ingram got the extra time the Toronto Raptors needed him to have as he recovers from an injury. The bigger question is whether it will be enough.
The Raptors forward is listed as questionable for Game 7 against the Cleveland Cavaliers with right heel inflammation, and the latest update from Sunday morning was not especially encouraging. Sportsnet reported that Ingram was spotted in a walking boot at Raptors shootaround in Cleveland ahead of the winner-take-all matchup.
That does not officially rule Ingram out. It does, however, keep his availability firmly in doubt hours before tipoff.
Toronto is still alive because RJ Barrett delivered one of the biggest shots of his career in Game 6. Barrett’s overtime winner forced Game 7, extending the Raptors’ season and giving Ingram roughly another 48 hours from missing Game 6 to try to get his heel ready for Cleveland.
That extra time matters. Whether it changes the outcome of Ingram’s status is now the central Raptors question before Game 7.
Ingram, with a walking boot protecting his injured right heel, at shoot around the morning of Game 7.
Sportsnet’s Michael Grange reported that Ingram was in a walking boot at Raptors shootaround on Sunday morning in Cleveland. Sportsnet noted that Ingram was also seen in a walking boot after Game 6 and had already missed Toronto’s 112-110 overtime win on Friday because of right heel inflammation.
The injury happened at the worst possible time for Toronto. Ingram aggravated the heel issue during the second quarter of Game 5, a road loss that put the Raptors one defeat away from elimination. Sportsnet reported that the Raptors said the heel did not improve enough with one day off between Game 5 and Game 6.
Barrett’s shot gave Ingram one more window to recover. Instead of Toronto’s season ending Friday, Ingram had Saturday and Sunday morning to receive treatment, rest the heel and test whether he could be available for Game 7.
Still, the walking boot complicates the optimism.
If Ingram cannot play, Toronto will again need more from the group that kept the series alive without him. Ja’Kobe Walter moved into a bigger role in Game 6 and scored 24 points in 43 minutes, according to Sportsnet. Scottie Barnes and Barrett also carried major creation responsibilities in the elimination-game win, and that formula may need to hold up again if Ingram is limited or ruled out.
The Raptors do not necessarily need Ingram to carry the offense to make his return matter. Even a limited version of the veteran forward could give Toronto another shot creator, another long wing for Cleveland to account for and another release valve late in the clock.
But Game 7 is not a normal regular-season test. If Ingram is unable to move comfortably, Toronto may decide that the cleaner option is to lean into the group that just won without him.
Ingram remained questionable entering Game 7 with a heel injury. The Raptors’ injury report also listed Immanuel Quickley out with a hamstring injury, while Cleveland had no players listed on its injury report, according to Fox Sports 1360’s Game 7 injury report.
That creates two layers to the decision for Toronto.
The first is obvious: Can Ingram play? The second is whether he can play well enough to justify changing the rhythm of a rotation that just survived an elimination game.
Ingram is the Raptors’ regular-season leading scorer, and Sportsnet described his possible absence as a major concern for Toronto entering Game 7. Even so, his recent playoff stretch has been interrupted by the heel issue. He played only 11 minutes in Game 5 before leaving, finishing with one point, one rebound and two assists, per Sportsnet.
That is why Sunday’s final status will matter beyond the simple in-or-out label. If Ingram is active, fans will want to watch whether he looks mobile early, whether he can defend without favoring the heel and whether Raptors head coach Darko Rajakovic uses him in shorter bursts.
If he is out, Walter, Barrett, Barnes and the rest of Toronto’s wings will again have to absorb the scoring and spacing burden.
Raptors-Cavaliers Game 7 tips off Sunday, May 3, at 7:30 p.m. ET from Rocket Arena in Cleveland.
The game will air on NBC and stream on Peacock in the United States. The Raptors’ official schedule also lists Sportsnet as the Canadian TV option, while Sportsnet lists Sportsnet ONE and Sportsnet+ for the broadcast in Canada.
The matchup exists because Barrett gave Toronto one more night.
With the Raptors trailing late in overtime in Game 6, Barrett made a dramatic 3-pointer with 1.2 seconds left to lift Toronto to a 112-110 win and force the series back to Cleveland. Reuters reported that Barrett’s shot hit the back of the rim, bounced high and dropped in, drawing an obvious comparison to Kawhi Leonard’s famous 2019 playoff winner for Toronto.
Barrett finished with 24 points. Barnes had 25 points and 14 assists, while Walter added 24 points in Ingram’s absence. Cleveland got 26 points and 14 rebounds from Evan Mobley, plus 24 points from Donovan Mitchell, but the Cavaliers could not close the series in Toronto.
Now the series shifts back to Cleveland, where the Cavaliers will have home court and the Raptors will have one more chance to see whether the extra time Barrett created was enough for Ingram’s heel.
Erik Anderson is an award-winning sports journalist covering the NBA, MLB and NFL for Heavy.com. He also focuses on the trading card market. His work has appeared in nationally-recognized outlets including The New York Times, Associated Press , USA Today, and ESPN. More about Erik Anderson
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