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After beating the Bucks on their third try after losing twice to them on the road, the Cavs look for some deja vu as they take on the Raptors, who are also 2-0 against the Cavs after two games in Toronto.
The Raptors are not in the same league as the Bucks talentwise as they come in with a 14-18 record. Like the Bucks they don’t travel well, sporting a road record of 4-12. However, it’s not a good idea to take them lightly.
Two nights ago the Knicks, winners of eight straight, lost to the Raptors at home. The Raptors had lost six in a row and were 3-12 on the road. My guess is the Knicks were a little complacent. Pascal Siakam lit them up for 52 points and he only made two 3’s. It was a Giannis Antetokoumpo performance.
In the win over the Knicks, Siakam and Fred VanVleet combined to score 80 of the Raptors’ 113 points, taking exactly 50% of their shots. The Cavs will know who to focus their defense on.
In the first two meetings the Cavs lost 108-105 (first game of the year where Garland was injured early) and 100-88 (with no Jarrett Allen). Two low scoring games between teams that rank 26th and 29th in possessions per game. Tonight the Cavs should have both Garland and Allen for the entire game.
The Raptors will be missing Otto Porter and Precious Achiuwa, who combine for 14.3 points and 9.4 rebounds off the bench. The bigger problem may be starting guard Gary Trent, Jr who is listed as questionable. Trent is averaging 16.5 points in two games against the Cavs. If Trent is out the Raps will be missing 30 points and 15 rebounds when you include Porter and Achiuwa. The backup guards are Flynn and Banton, who average 6.7 and 5.2 ppg.
Pascal Siakam has a line of 26/9/7 and shoots 49% from the field. Hopefully he’ll be a little fatigued after getting 52 points in 41 minutes Wednesday against the Knicks.
OG Anunoby averages 19 points and 6 boards, Scottie Barnes gets 14 and 7, and rookie center Christian Koloko averages 3.6 points. Koloko, 7’0” and 22 years old, was the 33rd pick this year. They could also start PF Juancho Hernangomez (4.7 pts).
The Raptors are a very athletic team that leads the NBA in forcing turnovers. They’re also 6th in block percentage. They don’t defend well at all, ranking 29th in opponents’ effective field goal percentage and last in opponents’ 2-point percentage so if you can prevent them from stealing the ball or blocking the shot you can score. They’re average at defending the 3-pointer.
They seem to be a gambling defense that goes for steals and blocks - when they don’t get the ball it’s an easy bucket for the opponent. That would explain a team that is 1st in steals and 29th in eFG.
Overall they’re 10th in scoring defense on the road but part of that is because they play slow, ranking 26th in possessions per game. The Cavs are 29th so this should be another low scoring game like the first two.
Offensively they rank 24th in points per game on the road. They love to run off turnovers, ranking 2nd in fast break points. They’re 10th in points in the paint and 5th in offensive rebound percentage.
They don’t shoot well, ranking 29th in effective field goal percentage, 27th in 2-point percentage, and 29th in 3-point percentage on the road. They like to go one-on-one, ranking 25th in assists per possession. They protect the ball, committing fewer turnovers per possession than any team. They got fouled a lot and make 20 free throws per game.
So their defensive approach is to force turnovers or block a shot and get easy fast break points. On offense they take it to the rim and get fouled or miss the shot and get a putback. They rebound 30.4% of their own missed shots. Everything goes through VanVleet and Siakam.
The Cavs have done a pretty good job on Siakam (20.5 points) and VanVleet (14.0 points), holding both of them 5-6 points below their averages. The Raptors have hit 43.1% of their 3’s against Cleveland in the first two games, well above their season average of 31%, which is last in the league. The Cavs need to do better defending the 3 tonight.
Evan Mobley is questionable with a sore knee so that would be a big blow as he would probably be guarding Siakam. The Cavs need all the length and athleticism they can get against the Raptors. However, Mobley only played 23 minutes and scored 7 points against Milwaukee and the Cavs won anyway against a better team than Toronto.
My guess is the Cavs will want some payback after losing both games in Toronto and will want to make a statement like they did against the Bucks. The Raptors have done a great job defensively, holding the Cavs to 105 and 88 points in Toronto. The Cavs need more help from their bench - LeVert and Love averaged just 8 and 9 points in the first two games. Okoro has scored two points in 44 minutes against the Raptors.
The Cavs will win if they:
The Raptors are not in the same league as the Bucks talentwise as they come in with a 14-18 record. Like the Bucks they don’t travel well, sporting a road record of 4-12. However, it’s not a good idea to take them lightly.
Two nights ago the Knicks, winners of eight straight, lost to the Raptors at home. The Raptors had lost six in a row and were 3-12 on the road. My guess is the Knicks were a little complacent. Pascal Siakam lit them up for 52 points and he only made two 3’s. It was a Giannis Antetokoumpo performance.
In the win over the Knicks, Siakam and Fred VanVleet combined to score 80 of the Raptors’ 113 points, taking exactly 50% of their shots. The Cavs will know who to focus their defense on.
In the first two meetings the Cavs lost 108-105 (first game of the year where Garland was injured early) and 100-88 (with no Jarrett Allen). Two low scoring games between teams that rank 26th and 29th in possessions per game. Tonight the Cavs should have both Garland and Allen for the entire game.
The Raptors will be missing Otto Porter and Precious Achiuwa, who combine for 14.3 points and 9.4 rebounds off the bench. The bigger problem may be starting guard Gary Trent, Jr who is listed as questionable. Trent is averaging 16.5 points in two games against the Cavs. If Trent is out the Raps will be missing 30 points and 15 rebounds when you include Porter and Achiuwa. The backup guards are Flynn and Banton, who average 6.7 and 5.2 ppg.
Pascal Siakam has a line of 26/9/7 and shoots 49% from the field. Hopefully he’ll be a little fatigued after getting 52 points in 41 minutes Wednesday against the Knicks.
OG Anunoby averages 19 points and 6 boards, Scottie Barnes gets 14 and 7, and rookie center Christian Koloko averages 3.6 points. Koloko, 7’0” and 22 years old, was the 33rd pick this year. They could also start PF Juancho Hernangomez (4.7 pts).
The Raptors are a very athletic team that leads the NBA in forcing turnovers. They’re also 6th in block percentage. They don’t defend well at all, ranking 29th in opponents’ effective field goal percentage and last in opponents’ 2-point percentage so if you can prevent them from stealing the ball or blocking the shot you can score. They’re average at defending the 3-pointer.
They seem to be a gambling defense that goes for steals and blocks - when they don’t get the ball it’s an easy bucket for the opponent. That would explain a team that is 1st in steals and 29th in eFG.
Overall they’re 10th in scoring defense on the road but part of that is because they play slow, ranking 26th in possessions per game. The Cavs are 29th so this should be another low scoring game like the first two.
Offensively they rank 24th in points per game on the road. They love to run off turnovers, ranking 2nd in fast break points. They’re 10th in points in the paint and 5th in offensive rebound percentage.
They don’t shoot well, ranking 29th in effective field goal percentage, 27th in 2-point percentage, and 29th in 3-point percentage on the road. They like to go one-on-one, ranking 25th in assists per possession. They protect the ball, committing fewer turnovers per possession than any team. They got fouled a lot and make 20 free throws per game.
So their defensive approach is to force turnovers or block a shot and get easy fast break points. On offense they take it to the rim and get fouled or miss the shot and get a putback. They rebound 30.4% of their own missed shots. Everything goes through VanVleet and Siakam.
The Cavs have done a pretty good job on Siakam (20.5 points) and VanVleet (14.0 points), holding both of them 5-6 points below their averages. The Raptors have hit 43.1% of their 3’s against Cleveland in the first two games, well above their season average of 31%, which is last in the league. The Cavs need to do better defending the 3 tonight.
Evan Mobley is questionable with a sore knee so that would be a big blow as he would probably be guarding Siakam. The Cavs need all the length and athleticism they can get against the Raptors. However, Mobley only played 23 minutes and scored 7 points against Milwaukee and the Cavs won anyway against a better team than Toronto.
My guess is the Cavs will want some payback after losing both games in Toronto and will want to make a statement like they did against the Bucks. The Raptors have done a great job defensively, holding the Cavs to 105 and 88 points in Toronto. The Cavs need more help from their bench - LeVert and Love averaged just 8 and 9 points in the first two games. Okoro has scored two points in 44 minutes against the Raptors.
The Cavs will win if they:
- Don’t commit too many turnovers leading to easy transition buckets.
- Protect the defensive glass and limit second chance points.
- Get more scoring from their bench and also from Donovan Mitchell, who is averaging 19.5 against Toronto.
- Shoot better than 25.8% on 3’s which is their average against the Raptors so far. They also need to improve their perimeter defense and at least play even in the 3-point matchup.
