Leg injury will sideline Joey Graham up to four weeks: Cleveland Cavaliers Insider

Joey Graham's strained right quad will keep him out two to three weeks, according to coach Byron Scott. But Graham expects to be back sooner and not disrupt Scott's eight-man rotation.

CLEVELAND, Ohio — Joey Graham sat in the chair in front of his locker before Saturday's game against the Knicks, stretched his legs out in a relaxed pose and proclaimed he was ready to trot onto the court and play.

Minutes before that proclamation, however, Cavaliers coach Byron Scott revealed that the strained right quad injury Graham suffered in the Cleveland loss to Miami on Wednesday will keep the power forward out two to three weeks.

"It feels fine," Graham said. "But the MRI says something different."

Graham admitted that his inability to feel the pain might have more to do with his positive outlook than the actual injury he suffered. The quad injury came when he collided with Heat guard Dwyane Wade and both tumbled into the stands.

"It's a mind-set," Graham said. "Pain is just relative."

Still, the injury is enough that Scott will have to slightly alter his plan to use an eight-man rotation. Graham played 15 minutes in Oklahoma City and 16 minutes in Miami, and was one of the Cavaliers' stronger defensive players.

Without Graham, Scott said Jawad Williams and Jamario Moon will earn more time in the rotation. Moon, who was a starter in the season-opener, has slipped out of favor almost entirely, logging only two minutes in the past five games as he was inactive for four of those contests.

"It doesn't change what I want to do as far as the rotation goes," Scott said. "Obviously, it changes as far as the player who's playing in that eighth spot. But other than that, I still want to stick to that eight-man rotation."

Graham said he expects to be back soon.

"My body is a fast-healing body," he said. "I'll be back before you know it."

Home cooking? Saturday marked the Cavaliers' first game in Cleveland since Dec. 8 against Chicago. Returning from a four-game road trip, the Cavaliers have played seven of their past eight games on the road.

One would think the Cavaliers would be eager to return to The Q, but they haven't exactly fared any better at home than they have on the road. Entering Saturday, the Cavs were 4-7 in Cleveland compared to 3-12 on the road, and actually shoot marginally better on the road -- .428 on the road, .420 at home. Thanks to some better 3-point accuracy on the road (.368 compared to .313 at home), the Cavaliers are averaging nearly five more points per game on the road -- 95.7 to 90.5.

The Cavaliers play four of their next five games at home, and Scott is hoping his team can find some comfort at home.

"We've just got to embrace the home crowd, embrace being home and embrace being back from the road trip where we didn't have a lot of success and look to try to get back on our feet," he said.

Dribbles: Leon Powe will be out for about a week with a right finger abrasion, Scott said. . . . Fox Sports Ohio will broadcast an All Access Night on Monday when the Cavaliers host Utah. The telecast offers fans a behind-the-scenes view of the game with more access to players, coaches and fans -- including Scott wearing a microphone during the game. Fans can interact with broadcasters Austin Carr and Fred McLeod by visiting foxsportsohio.com and clicking on "Cavaliers All Access" to log into "Cover It Live." Once logged in, fans can submit questions for both Carr and McLeod to be answered during the telecast.

To reach this Plain Dealer reporter: jvalade@plaind.com, 216-999-4654