The Cleveland Cavaliers got the win they needed to stop the skid, winning Monday night against the Orlando Magic. That win came at a cost, however, with rookie stud Evan Mobley going down with an ankle injury that will see him miss at least the next game: a game that comes against the white-hot Dallas Mavericks.
The Cavs host the Dallas Mavericks on Wednesday night fighting for a top-6 seed. What are the betting odds and how do you bet this contest?
The Mavericks, led by Luka Doncic, are destroying teams of late, winning 14 of 19 games. They now are fourth in the Western Conference and just a game back of the injury-stricken Golden State Warriors for third. The Cavs, on the other hand, have fallen to seventh in the Eastern Conference, a game back of the Toronto Raptors and 1.5 from the Chicago Bulls.
The saving grace for the Cavs is that the Mavs have been wobbling on the road, losing their last three contests away from the American Airlines Center. The Cavs play four of their last seven games on the road, but their three toughest matchups, including tonight’s game, will be at the Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse, opening up the chance they can claw their way back out of the play-in. To do so, they need to find a way to win tonight.
Cleveland Cavaliers vs Dallas Mavericks: Odds, spread, over/under
The Cavaliers (42-33) will host the Mavericks (47-29) tonight. According to our partners over at WynnBet, the Mavericks are favored by three points. The over/under point total for the game is 213.5.
For reference, when these two teams met in late November, the Cavs blew out the Mavs 114-96, which even with the 18-point spread easily came in at the under.
These two teams are playing very differently right now, of course, with Doncic averaging gaudy numbers; last night Doncic dropped 34 points, 12 rebounds and 12 assists (and was a game-high +21) in a shellacking of the Los Angeles Lakers. Unfortunately, the Cavs can’t benefit too much from Dallas traveling in on a back-to-back, as Doncic played just 30 minutes in the blowout and no player logged more than Reggie Bullock’s 33. The Cavs had the night off after the win Monday over the Magic.
Cavs vs Mavericks: Projected starting lineups, injury report
Mavs starters: Jalen Brunson, Luka Doncic, Reggie Bullock, Dorian Finney-Smith, Dwight Powell
Cavs starters: Darius Garland, Isaac Okoro, Caris LeVert, Lauri Markkanen, Kevin Love
The Mavericks’ key injuries: Tim Hardaway Jr. (out, foot); Sterling Brown, Trey Burke (out, health and safety protocols); Theo Pinson (out, finger)
The Cavaliers’ key injuries: Collin Sexton, Dean Wade (out for season, knee); Jarrett Allen (out, finger); Evan Mobley, Rajon Rondo (out, ankle)
Cavs vs Mavs: Prediction
It’s anyone’s guess as to who head coach J.B. Bickerstaff will start tonight against the Mavs after Evan Mobley went down. One assumes at this point he is pinning Darius Garland’s name to a bulletin board, then putting everyone else in a hat and pulling out names at random. It’s not crazy to think Moses Brown, Ed Davis or even Dylan Windler could start for the injured Evan Mobley. For now, we’ll go with the group that started the second half on Monday night.
That means that the Cavs, still clinging to a Top-5 defensive rating for the season despite an ever-increasing poor stretch of games on that end, will start just one above-average defender in Isaac Okoro. He will likely get the unenviable task of guarding Luka Doncic tonight. Expect Lamar Stevens, Windler and perhaps even Lauri Markkanen to get run on him too.
That’s the crux of the matchup between these two teams. If Doncic’s stepback 3-pointer is falling, the Cavs don’t have the right defensive mix available to stop him. If it isn’t, then they can force him to drive, stay home, and hope Okoro and Stevens make it hard to finish over them. That task would be much easier with Jarrett Allen or Mobley roaming the paint, but the Cavs have to work with the ingredients provided.
The Mavericks’ best defenders are at the frontcourt positions, so Garland should be able to shake free for good looks. That being said, the Mavs may elect to double him and get the ball out of his hands; whether Kevin Love and Markkanen can punish that is a massive question mark. The Cavs will be desperate, but they may not have the horses to hang.
Prediction: Dallas 108, Cleveland 101
The Bet: Mavs (-3.0), UNDER
Cavs vs Mavs: Where to Watch
Both the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Dallas Mavericks play in metropolitan areas where Bally Sports runs the regional sports networks, and it will be Bally’s network of stations broadcasting the game. Bally Sports Ohio will have the Cavs’ side, and Bally Sports Southwest the Mavs’. Feel free to tune in on NBA League Pass for everyone else.
Cleveland Cavaliers Upcoming Schedule
The Cavs are right back at it tomorrow, taking on the Atlanta Hawks in Atlanta at 7:30pm. This game is a make-up of the teams’ COVID-canceled contest from December, and unfortunately will create a four-games-in-five-nights stretch for the Cavs. With the Hawks lurking below the Cavs in the play-in, and the Raptors just above, this game is crucial for a Cavs team needing every win it can get.
It’s another back-to-back this weekend, as the Cavs travel to Madison Square Garden on Saturday to face the New York Knicks in a matinee matchup. They return home for a Sunday game against the Philadelphia 76ers, hoping to finally notch their first win in four tries against the mercurial club.