Cleveland Cavaliers have had a bear of a schedule thus far. They are a strong 7-4 on the season despite playing e..."/> Cleveland Cavaliers have had a bear of a schedule thus far. They are a strong 7-4 on the season despite playing e..."/> Cleveland Cavaliers have had a bear of a schedule thus far. They are a strong 7-4 on the season despite playing e..."/>
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Cavs: Previewing the upcoming four-game homestand

By Josh Cornelissen

Daniel Gafford, Washington Wizards. Photo by Scott Taetsch/Getty Images
Daniel Gafford, Washington Wizards. Photo by Scott Taetsch/Getty Images /
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Photo by Nic Antaya/Getty Images /

Cavs: Previewing the Detroit Pistons game

Time and Date: Friday, November 12th, 7:30pm

Record: 1-8, 15th in the Eastern Conference

Season Recap: The Detroit Pistons are behind the Cavaliers in their franchise cycle, amassing young prospects and giving them plenty of playing time to develop. Add in the fact that No. 1 overall pick Cade Cunningham missed Detroit’s first five games and it’s no surprise that they have lost eight of their first nine games. They have also had a brutal recent stretch, playing last season’s top-three seeds in each of their last four games, all losses.

Matchup to Watch: Jarrett Allen vs Isaiah Stewart. Detroit’s starting center, the man they call “Beef Stew” is a load inside, 250 pounds of brute force. Stewart leads the team in offensive rebounding by a mile, and the best way for the Pistons to score effectively is to get multiple bites at the apple. Allen’s recent rebounding totals have boosted him to seventh in the league, but even so the Cavs are just 28th in defensive rebounding percentage (they get the defensive rebound just 73.3 percent of the time). Allen will need to step up and keep Beef Stew off the offensive glass to make sure the Pistons can’t hang around.

Prediction: Before the season these two teams seemed to be close in talent level, but Cleveland has proven early on they are in a different class than Detroit. It’s the NBA so anything can happen, and the Cavs are not so good they can sleepwalk through this game, but Cleveland should be victorious. Cleveland 107, Detroit 96