Game Preview – Thursday February 18, 2010 – Denver Nuggets @ Cleveland Cavaliers
While it is unlikely that the newest Cavalier, Antawn Jamison, will be in uniform against the Denver Nuggets tonight, he will certainly be in attendance to cheer on his new team. The Cavs? Oh, they’ll be just fine, riding a 13 game winning streak, which is the longest streak in the NBA this season and is tied for the longest streak in franchise history.
But expect a bumpier ride than usual as the Cavaliers prepare to battle the Nuggets, a team they lost to back in early January when Mo Williams and Zydrunas Ilgauskas each scored 11 points and Denver was without Carmelo Anthony. This time around Cleveland will be without Mo Williams, who is expected to return from injury soon, and Zydrunas Ilgauskas, reportedly hard at work trying to secure a buyout from Washington, while the Nuggets will have Carmelo Anthony in the starting lineup.
Regardless, Cleveland will look to capitalize against a Nuggets team coming off their biggest home loss of the season (-19 vs. San Antonio). With their third straight TNT Thursday night game, the Cavs will look to continue their Turner streak that has featured three straight prime time wins after starting the season 1-3 in games broadcast by TNT.
The bad news? Last season when the Cavaliers were on a 13 game winning streak they squared off against the Washington Wizards in a Thursday night TNT game. The result was an 8 point loss and the streak was history. After dealing with the Wizards last night, hopefully Jamison brings some good Karma against the Nuggets tonight.
Ultimately, expect a larger hand in the offense from Shaquille O’Neal, J.J. Hickson, and Anderson Varejao, as they look to pick up the slack in Z’s absence before Jamison plays in his first game as a Cavalier. In the team’s last game, a 115-106 victory over Orlando, the three big men combined for 46 points and 14 rebounds on 22-34 (64.7%) shooting.