The Cleveland Cavaliers entered their weekend back-to-back in something of a freefall, watching the hope of a top-6 seed slip away and entertaining the thoughts of a slide further down the standings. Instead, they righted the ship at least temporarily with a 119-101 win over the New York Knicks on Saturday afternoon.
Now they have flown home to host the Philadelphia 76ers in the teams’ fourth and final meeting of the season. It is also the Cavs’ penultimate home game of the season before the season finale next Sunday. With the Chicago Bulls, Brooklyn Nets and Charlotte Hornets all losing, the Cavs are a little more secure in their current seventh-place spot and have at least a glimmer of hope of regaining sixth.
The Cavs host the 76ers on Sunday night trying to grasp a sliver of hope. What do you need to know about who is playing and how to bet?
That Hornets loss came at the hands of the 76ers, a 30-plus-point beatdown in Philadelphia. The 76ers are fully healthy and still firmly in the mix among the top four teams in the conference; they are also still not far enough clear of the white-hot Toronto Raptors in fifth to relax down the stretch. Every game still matters for both teams entering Sunday’s game.
Cleveland Cavaliers vs Philadelphia 76ers: Odds, spread, over/under
The Cavaliers (43-35) will host the 76ers (47-30) tonight. According to our partners over at WynnBet, the 76ers are 4.5 point favorites on the road. The over/under point total for the game is 223.5. In three meetings thus far this season the 76ers have won by ten, six and four points respectively, and the average point total was 224, making this a razor-sharp line by Vegas.
Both teams come into the game having played on Saturday, and both flew into Cleveland after matinees on the East Coast, giving them nearly identical rest situations.
Cavs vs 76ers: Projected starting lineups, injury report
76ers starters: Tyrese Maxey, James Harden, Matisse Thybulle, Tobias Harris, Joel Embiid
Cavs starters: Darius Garland, Isaac Okoro, Caris LeVert, Lauri Markkanen, Moses Brown
The 76ers’ key injuries: Players
The Cavaliers’ key injuries: Collin Sexton, Dean Wade (out for season, knee); Jarrett Allen (out, finger); Evan Mobley (out, ankle); Rajon Rondo (doubtful, ankle)
Cavs vs 76ers: Prediction
This preview could highlight ways for the Cavs to exploit Matisse Thybulle on the defensive end, leaving him unguarded to allow a player such as Lamar Stevens free reign to roam the court. It could discuss Cedi Osman‘s current hot streak, the hot-and-cold nature of Caris LeVert’s scoring, or whether the smart move in guarding James Harden is to leave Isaac Okoro alone in isolation and goad Harden to shoot.
All of those are pieces of the puzzle, but they’re all just singular interior pieces. The entire outside edge, corners and all, is the dominance of Joel Embiid against a team that will be without Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley. Allen has developed into one of the league’s best interior defensive players, and without him this team would seem to have little chance to slow down the MVP-candidate center. Without Mobley as well, it seems hopeless.
If the Cavs find a way to slow down Embiid, they have a chance. Whether that is sending immediate doubles, trying to front while sending hard help behind him on the catch, or some other method (surely not trusting Moses Brown or Kevin Love to hold up one-on-one) the Cavs have limited options to survive. Embiid could drop 45 points in three quarters in a blowout; if he can be help to more like 25 points and a fair amount of jumpers, it might mean the Cavs survived enough to make this a game.
Win Sunday against the 76ers, and the Cavs have life again chasing the sixth seed. Lose, and that might be all she wrote. Does that make the Cavs desperate enough to claw their way to an unlikely victory? Probably not, but this team has too much heart to be counted completely out.
Prediction: Philadelphia 115, Cleveland 112
The Bet: Cleveland (+4.5), OVER
Cavs vs 76ers: Where to Watch
The injury-riddled Cavs will take on the full-strength 76ers on the usual local stations, Bally Sports Ohio for Cleveland fans and NBC Sports Philadelphia for those rooting for the Sixers. Everyone else can tune in on NBA League Pass. The game is scheduled to tip-off around 6:00pm ET.
Cleveland Cavaliers Upcoming Schedule
Win against the 76ers, and it’s the final cupcake game of the season Tuesday night in Orlando. That could give them a mini three-game winning streak, which at the very least probably keeps them at the top of the play-in, if not a chance at catching the Chicago Bulls above them. Yet since Chicago has a two-game lead and the tie-breaker, the play-in is the most likely outcome.
That makes Friday’s game in Brooklyn all the more important. The Nets are below the Cavs in the play-in standings and will be pushing hard to rise into the top-half of that bracket, to secure two shots to win into the playoffs. Finally, the season ends at home against the Milwaukee Bucks, who will probably still be fighting for playoff seeding right up until the end.