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The Cavaliers, winners of five of their last seven, ring in the New Year on the beautiful shores of Lake Ontario as they take on the Toronto Raptors for the second time this year. The first game was in Cleveland on Nov. 26 with the Cavs prevailing 105-102 with both teams healthy. The Raptors started 8-8 but have since gone 4-12, including a loss to Detroit Saturday, snapping the Pistons 28-game losing streak. However, the Raptors were short-handed since they traded OG Anunoby, Malachi Flynn, and Precious Achiuwa to the Knicks and the players they received hadn’t been cleared to play yet. They have one win against teams over .500 in their last 17 games (Phoenix at 16-15). The Raptors are 8-9 at home while the Cavs are 9-6 on the road...

What started so well ended.. not as well. The Cavs came out guns a blazing, and it looked like the Bucks just may be another bump in the road. Until, the Bucks’ stars stepped up, and the Cavs outside shooting turned down. The Cavs fought until the end, but the firepower wasn’t quite there. The Cavs were on it offensively to start. They scored 37 first quarter points which is tied for the 5th highest scoring total in a quarter this year. They now have 5 35+ point quarters in their last 7 games. When the offense is going, it’s going. The unique part of this scoring onslaught is it was all primarily from doing damage in the paint. The Cavs were 1-9 from 3, and only made 2 free-throws in the first quarter yet they had 20 points in the...

Winners of 9 of their last 12 games and on a roll after a 20-point comeback win on the road against Dallas, the Cavs return home to take on the Milwaukee Bucks for the first time this season. In an odd scheduling quirk, the Cavs and Bucks will play four times in the next month and not see each other again in the regular season. So we’ll probably play them all four times without Evan Mobley and at least twice without Darius Garland. The game is on NBA TV. The Bucks are 23-8 overall and 7-6 on the road. They have played the 2nd easiest schedule, but they are 7-2 against the top six teams in the East and 10-4 against teams .500 and over. Their only injured player is Jae Crowder who comes off the bench. Giannis is listed as probable. The...

How? The Cavs were down 20 in the second quarter and ending up coming back on the road versus a Luka Doncic led team to win by 3? How? If you watched the first half and saw the end, you would be confused. If you watched from the second half on, things might make a little more sense. The Cavs lost the first and second quarters but won the third and fourth quarters. The Mavericks scored 69 points in the first half but only 41 in the second half. Every game sans Evan Mobley and Darius Garland, the Cavs have had one truly terrible defensive quarter. It just so happened against the Mavericks it was the first quarter. The Cavs allowed 39 total points which was the 4th worst defense quarter on the year – three of their five worst defensive...

Winners of four of their last five games, the Cavaliers head to Dallas to take on the 18-12 Mavericks, who are 8-6 at home. The Athletic had this synopsis of their season yesterday: Dallas Mavericks (17-12): 21st-toughest schedule; 1-7 against the top six in the West; 6-10 against non-losing teams. Résumé Meter: The Mavs have been destroying bad teams, almost exclusively. The Mavericks beat Phoenix 128-114 on Monday as Luka Doncic went for 50 points. However, Phoenix did not have a center as they started three guards and two power forwards, one being 35-year-old Kevin Durant. The Mavericks have a point differential of +1.5. Recently they lost to Houston by 26, the Clippers by 9 and 19, Minnesota by 18, Denver by 26. In the last...

Donovan Mitchell isn’t the only Cavs guard eligible for an extension, so is Isaac Okoro. Entering his fourth season, Okoro is set to hit free agency next summer if he isn’t extended. The Cavs can make him a restricted free agent with a $11.8M qualifying offer. Otherwise, Okoro will be set free. The Cavs and Okoro's agent could have pursued a deal this year, however the decision was always headed towards both sides waiting until next offseason to talk further – unless Okoro was content taking a below market deal. While the Cavs are likely interested in retaining Okoro long-term, both sides will have to evaluate Okoro’s development to understand what an extension may look like. Right now, there is more hope for what Okoro could be...