Cavaliers guard Larry Hughes is expected to miss Cleveland's next two games _ and possibly more _ after spraining his right ankle in the club's win against Portland on Wednesday.

Hughes, who was sidelined for 45 games last season with a broken finger that required two surgeries, got hurt while scrambling for a loose ball in the second quarter. Hughes got his leg tangled under Blazers forward Martell Webster, who fell on him from behind.

Hughes spent several minutes lying on the floor in pain before being assisted to the locker-room. He returned to the bench in the second half but didn't play.

X-rays and an MRI taken Thursday revealed a high ankle sprain. Hughes, who has been injury prone throughout his career, will sit out Friday's home game against Minnesota and a road game at Washington on Saturday.

The Cavaliers intend to treat Hughes' ankle conservatively so he doesn't rush back and hurt it further. The team has four games in five days next week.

``We know how to play without him, but we don't want to play without him,'' forward Donyell Marshall said. ``He missed 45 games last year, and that was a big part of our season. We don't want to play (that long) without him.''

Hughes is averaging 13.8 points, 3.5 rebounds and 3.1 assists per game. While he's out, swingman Sasha Pavlovic may take Hughes' place in the starting lineup.

© The Canadian Press, 2007