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Looking to extend their three-game winning streak the Cavs stay home and take on the Portland Trail Blazers. The Blazers are 10-7 but have lost 4 of 5. Those losses, however, were to Milwaukee, Utah, Brooklyn, and Dallas. They’re in a tough stretch of schedule.
The Cavaliers continue to luck out as All-Star point guard Damian Lillard is out with a calf injury. Lillard leads the team in points and assists. The Blazers are 3-3 when he does not play. Coming off wins over Charlotte with LaMelo Ball out and Miami with Jimmy Butler out, the Cavs’ good fortune continues. Sometimes it’s not who you play, it’s when you play them.
Lillard is the only point guard listed on their roster. Their starting lineup Monday against Milwaukee was:
SG Anfernee Simons; 22.9 pts, 4.1 assists, 42.5% overall.
SG Josh Hart, 9.6 pts, 8.4 rebounds, 47% overall and 38% on 3’s. Hart has an ankle problem and will be a game time decision.
SG Shaedon Sharpe, 9.2 pts on 50% and 43% in 21 minutes off the bench. Sharpe was the #7 pick of the 2022 draft.
SF Jerami Grant, 19.6 pts on 47% overall and 47% on 3’s.
C Jusuf Nurkic, 13.6 pts and 10.1 rebounds, 51.4%.
Nobody on their bench averages more than 7 ppg.
Even with Lillard playing 11 games the Blazers are below average offensively, ranking 21st at 110 points per game. On the road they average 106 points. Their 3-point shooting doesn’t travel; they’re hitting 37.6% at home and 28.7% on the road.
The Blazers draw a lot of fouls, ranking 3rd in free throws per offensive play. But Lillard shoots nearly 9 per game, which is 33% of the team’s average. He also shoots 32% of their 3’s.
Monday they scored 111 points on Milwaukee without Lillard, so the Cavs can’t get too complacent. Simons had 29 points and 5 assists. He was 9-for-12 on 2’s and 4-for-11 on 3’s so the Cavs should focus on staying in front of him and making him shoot from deep.
The Blazers started three shooting guards, a small forward, and a center against the Bucks. They scored 61 in the first half against the Bucks so the Cavs need to be ready to go at the opening tip. The Bucks may have been a little complacent with Lillard out and playing at home.
Defensively the Blazers are 19th in opponents’ effective field goal percentage but 7th in points allowed per game. This is because they play slow, ranking 27th in possessions per game. The Cavs are 23rd so these are two teams that like to take their time. It could be a low scoring game as they take turns walking the ball up the floor.
The Blazers defend the perimeter well, ranking 10th in opponents’ 3-point percentage. They don’t foul much (8th in free throws per play) and they don’t block shots (24th). They’re average in opponents’ points in the paint per game. At 290 pounds Nurkic is not a leaper so Allen and Mobley will be able to shoot over him.
Their starting lineup goes 6’3”, 6’5”, 6’6”, 6’8”, and 6’11”. It looks like Mobley will be on Jerami Grant who is shooting 47% on both 2’s and 3’s and averaging nearly 20 points per game. That will be a good matchup to watch on both ends of the floor. Grant is listed at 6’8”, 210, so they have the same body type. Mobley is longer but Grant is the better outside shooter.
Grant, the former Piston, is a player some Cavs’ fans argued that we should try to obtain. Too late - Portland got him.
Nurkic is 6’11”, 290, so I can see Robin Lopez getting some minutes. There are going to be some awesome collisions in the paint when these two bangers go at it. Nurkic averages 28 minutes per game . They have no other centers in their rotation. When Nurkic is out the Blazers will go with journeyman PF Drew Eubanks, 6’9”, 245, averaging 5.9 points. The Cavs should have a big advantage in the paint especially when Nurkic is out.
Simons, 6’3”, 181, is in his 5th season. He didn’t start until halfway through last year. In 15 starts this year he’s averaging 22.9 points and averaging 19 shots per game this month. He appears to be trying to take up the scoring slack with Lillard out. He took 23 shots on Monday.
The Blazers appear to be an average team without Lillard, going 3-3. However, they did beat Phoenix (11-6) and New Orleans (10-7) on the road without Dame so they are not pushovers. Grant had 30 and 27 points in those wins so the Cavs need to contain him.
The Blazers are on the second game of their road trip. Both teams had yesterday off.
Why the Cavs will win:
The Blazers don’t shoot well from deep on the road (29%). Grant is their best 3-point shooter at 47%, but Mobley has the length and quickness to contest his 3’s and make it difficult. With their leading scorer and assist man out, not to mention their team leader, the Cavs are in great position to get a win.
Why the Cavs will lose:
If the Cavs commit a lot of turnovers (like the 19 against Atlanta) and let Grant and Simons get hot from outside, they could lose. They need to minimize turnovers and force some turnovers - the Blazers rank 25th in turnovers and won't have their primary point guard. Coming in complacent and letting the Blazers score 60+ in the first half could also get them beat.
X factor: Dean Wade is listed as probable. (LeVert is out).
The Cavaliers continue to luck out as All-Star point guard Damian Lillard is out with a calf injury. Lillard leads the team in points and assists. The Blazers are 3-3 when he does not play. Coming off wins over Charlotte with LaMelo Ball out and Miami with Jimmy Butler out, the Cavs’ good fortune continues. Sometimes it’s not who you play, it’s when you play them.
Lillard is the only point guard listed on their roster. Their starting lineup Monday against Milwaukee was:
SG Anfernee Simons; 22.9 pts, 4.1 assists, 42.5% overall.
SG Josh Hart, 9.6 pts, 8.4 rebounds, 47% overall and 38% on 3’s. Hart has an ankle problem and will be a game time decision.
SG Shaedon Sharpe, 9.2 pts on 50% and 43% in 21 minutes off the bench. Sharpe was the #7 pick of the 2022 draft.
SF Jerami Grant, 19.6 pts on 47% overall and 47% on 3’s.
C Jusuf Nurkic, 13.6 pts and 10.1 rebounds, 51.4%.
Nobody on their bench averages more than 7 ppg.
Even with Lillard playing 11 games the Blazers are below average offensively, ranking 21st at 110 points per game. On the road they average 106 points. Their 3-point shooting doesn’t travel; they’re hitting 37.6% at home and 28.7% on the road.
The Blazers draw a lot of fouls, ranking 3rd in free throws per offensive play. But Lillard shoots nearly 9 per game, which is 33% of the team’s average. He also shoots 32% of their 3’s.
Monday they scored 111 points on Milwaukee without Lillard, so the Cavs can’t get too complacent. Simons had 29 points and 5 assists. He was 9-for-12 on 2’s and 4-for-11 on 3’s so the Cavs should focus on staying in front of him and making him shoot from deep.
The Blazers started three shooting guards, a small forward, and a center against the Bucks. They scored 61 in the first half against the Bucks so the Cavs need to be ready to go at the opening tip. The Bucks may have been a little complacent with Lillard out and playing at home.
Defensively the Blazers are 19th in opponents’ effective field goal percentage but 7th in points allowed per game. This is because they play slow, ranking 27th in possessions per game. The Cavs are 23rd so these are two teams that like to take their time. It could be a low scoring game as they take turns walking the ball up the floor.
The Blazers defend the perimeter well, ranking 10th in opponents’ 3-point percentage. They don’t foul much (8th in free throws per play) and they don’t block shots (24th). They’re average in opponents’ points in the paint per game. At 290 pounds Nurkic is not a leaper so Allen and Mobley will be able to shoot over him.
Their starting lineup goes 6’3”, 6’5”, 6’6”, 6’8”, and 6’11”. It looks like Mobley will be on Jerami Grant who is shooting 47% on both 2’s and 3’s and averaging nearly 20 points per game. That will be a good matchup to watch on both ends of the floor. Grant is listed at 6’8”, 210, so they have the same body type. Mobley is longer but Grant is the better outside shooter.
Grant, the former Piston, is a player some Cavs’ fans argued that we should try to obtain. Too late - Portland got him.
Nurkic is 6’11”, 290, so I can see Robin Lopez getting some minutes. There are going to be some awesome collisions in the paint when these two bangers go at it. Nurkic averages 28 minutes per game . They have no other centers in their rotation. When Nurkic is out the Blazers will go with journeyman PF Drew Eubanks, 6’9”, 245, averaging 5.9 points. The Cavs should have a big advantage in the paint especially when Nurkic is out.
Simons, 6’3”, 181, is in his 5th season. He didn’t start until halfway through last year. In 15 starts this year he’s averaging 22.9 points and averaging 19 shots per game this month. He appears to be trying to take up the scoring slack with Lillard out. He took 23 shots on Monday.
The Blazers appear to be an average team without Lillard, going 3-3. However, they did beat Phoenix (11-6) and New Orleans (10-7) on the road without Dame so they are not pushovers. Grant had 30 and 27 points in those wins so the Cavs need to contain him.
The Blazers are on the second game of their road trip. Both teams had yesterday off.
Why the Cavs will win:
The Blazers don’t shoot well from deep on the road (29%). Grant is their best 3-point shooter at 47%, but Mobley has the length and quickness to contest his 3’s and make it difficult. With their leading scorer and assist man out, not to mention their team leader, the Cavs are in great position to get a win.
Why the Cavs will lose:
If the Cavs commit a lot of turnovers (like the 19 against Atlanta) and let Grant and Simons get hot from outside, they could lose. They need to minimize turnovers and force some turnovers - the Blazers rank 25th in turnovers and won't have their primary point guard. Coming in complacent and letting the Blazers score 60+ in the first half could also get them beat.
X factor: Dean Wade is listed as probable. (LeVert is out).
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