CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Nearly one hour prior to tipoff against the Milwaukee Bucks, Tristan Thompson was walking through the locker room without a limp.

When it was pointed out to him that he was visibly moving better than he had been recently, a time when he was still feeling the effects of a sprained ankle that had him in a walking boot in early March, Thompson wanted to make something else known.

"I'm jumping better too," he said with a smile.

Thompson's return is coming. It could be any day now and acting head coach Larry Drew said the team is hoping to have Thompson back this week. Judging by how Thompson looked on Monday, both in the locker room and during his lengthy post-shootaround session, it wouldn't be too surprising to see Thompson in the lineup Wednesday night when the Cavaliers host the top-seeded Toronto Raptors.

But Thompson's impending return comes with more questions than anyone could have expected. And that's a credit to Ante Zizic.

Getting extended playing time once again in the Cavs' 124-117 win, Zizic scored 13 points on 4-of-6 from the field and 5-of-5 from the free throw line. He pulled down six rebounds, including four on the offensive end, doing his best Thompson impersonation.

Monday night marked Zizic's fourth double-figure scoring game in the last five, leaving Drew -- and Tyronn Lue -- with plenty to discuss over the next few days.

"Well certainly what Z has done in the last couple of weeks that he's been playing, he has shown that he deserves to be out on the floor," Drew said. "Getting Tristan back, right now not really knowing how we're going to juggle this thing, but I will say it's a nice problem to have. We haven't had that luxury.

"But the things that Z does on the floor, first of all he's big and he's real active around the glass. He gets his hands on a lot of balls and he's a good finisher around the basket. But that's a nice problem to have because he has certainly shown over the last couple of weeks that he deserves to play. That's something we as a staff, we're going to have to make some decisions."

When Thompson went down, things looked bleak up front for the Cavs. After all they were also missing Kevin Love, who was still working his way back from a broken hand. At that time, LeBron James and others in the organization lamented the lack of frontcourt players and how rebounding was going to be tough. It seemed like Thompson's most recent injury was going to force Jeff Green and James to play the 5 in small-ball lineups more frequently. Then Larry Nance Jr. sufferered a hamstring injury and things got worse.

At least, it looked that way initially. But Zizic changed that, capitalizing on his long-awaited opportunity.

He played 16 minutes -- the most of his NBA career -- during a blowout win against the Detroit Pistons on March 5 and has been steadily progressing ever since.

Over the last eight games, the supposed throw-in piece of the Kyrie Irving summer blockbuster, is averaging 8.5 points on 78.9 percent from the field to go with 4.1 rebounds in 13.8 minutes.

It's an enormous rise for a guy who, just three months ago, was given a spot start against Philadelphia and yanked out of the game after looking completely overwhelmed in the first five minutes -- a situation that a few Cavaliers staff members told cleveland.com wasn't fair to the rookie.

"He was in a tough situation," Drew said. "Throwing him in and playing him three or four minutes, it's hard to get a rhythm when you're put in a game like that. What we've asked him to do when we put him in the game, he has done it. Just given what the situation is now, we need him to play just because we're limited as far as big bodies are concerned. He's been able to play and get into some sort of a rhythm. The rest of the guys are looking for him when he's rolling to the basket. As I mentioned before, he's a good finisher around the basket with both hands.

"What he's done, he's really taken advantage of an opportunity. We tell our guys all the time, especially guys who don't play a lot of minutes, you have to be ready at all times because you just never know when your number is going to get called. We've been unfortunate, kind of riddled with the injury bug and he's had to play. And he's responded extremely well."

While the Cavs aren't completely surprised by Zizic's rise, who could have truly forecasted him having this significant of an impact?

Those in the organization credit his extraordinary work ethic first.

"He busts his ass," one member of the front office told cleveland.com Monday night. "It's nonstop."

Zizic stays on the court for extra sessions with Assistant Director of Player Development Vitaly Potapenko following every practice or shootaround. Sometimes the two work on post moves, trying to get Zizic to finish through contact. He's certainly showed some of those moves during this impressive eight-game stretch. Other times it's face-up jumpers. From time to time, Zizic and Potapenko even use a weighted training basketball. Free throws are always a staple, usually the final piece of a lengthy, sweat-filled workout.

The Cavs also believe Zizic's time in the G League with the Canton Charge has been invaluable, giving him an opportunity for consistent playing time while allowing him to build his confidence and get comfortable with some of his moves in game action.

I think he can really help us," Love said. "He's 21 years old, wants to learn, has played extended minutes and has been able to be productive in those minutes. Super efficient. We love what he does. He's a big man and right now missing T-Top and Larry is tough for us so having him out there is nice."

Unlike Thompson, Zizic has been more of an offensive threat. He's active and has shown an ability to finish around the rim. Opponents haven't sagged away from him. He's capitalized on opportunities while rolling to the basket after setting screens for teammates, who draw more attention. James even went as far as to call Zizic "key for our ballclub."

While Zizic's overall net rating doesn't stand out, it is better than Thompson's on the season by 1.5 points per 100 possessions. In the last eight games, Zizic has had a positive net rating, helping fill the void with Nance sidelined and allowing the Cavs to take a cautious approach with the hamstring injury.

Nearly six months ago, Zizic sat at a podium next to Jae Crowder, Isaiah Thomas and general manager Koby Altman, introduced as the newest members of the Cavaliers -- the detectable pieces of the Irving haul. Of course, the coveted 2018 first-round pick from the Brooklyn Nets was also included.

Flash forward to Monday. On a night the Nets won their second straight game, temporarily reducing the value of that first rounder, the best performance from the Irving trade belonged to Zizic, the oft-ignored fourth piece. Who would've predicted him as the only one left with a chance to make an impact down the stretch?

That is, if Drew and Lue decide Zizic has earned an even bigger opportunity with his recent play. At the very least, Zizic has made it a tough, unexpected conversation.