Once the Cleveland Cavaliers acquired Donovan Mitchell in a trade with the Utah Jazz in early September, a trade both sides have benefited from, they were catapulted straight into the contender discussion. This meant they were being discussed with the likes of the reigning defending Eastern Conference Champion Boston Celtics, the 2021 NBA Champion Milwaukee Bucks, the Brooklyn Nets (before they traded Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant), and the Philadelphia 76ers as the top teams in the East.
Cleveland and Philadelphia will meet two more times this season to close out their three-game regular season set, which Cleveland leads 1-0, and those final two matchups will have major playoff implications.
The final two meetings between the Cavs and Sixers will have major playoff implications.
Following a 117-109 victory over the San Antonio Spurs on Monday night in downtown Cleveland, the Cavaliers have rattled off seven straight wins and enter the contest with Philadelphia at 38-22. They’re 8-2 in their last 10 games.
Meanwhile, the Sixers have won three consecutive games after defeating the Houston Rockets 123-104 on Monday night and they enter Wednesday’s confrontation at 37-19. They’re 7-3 in their last 10 games. The Cavs are a game behind the Sixers for third place in the Eastern Conference standings. So something has to give when the rivals collide in the “City of Brotherly Love.”
Given where both teams sit in the East right now, the most likely way they’ll meet in the playoffs is in the Eastern Conference Finals. Milwaukee and Boston will have a major say in that though. However, what if both teams stumble down the stretch? The Sixers could fall to the fourth seed and the Cavs could drop down to the fifth seed, setting up a first round grudge match.
Had Cleveland not endured a number of injuries and lost eight of 11 down the stretch this past season, including a 112-108 home loss against Philly, they wouldn’t have found themselves in a do-or-die game against the Atlanta Hawks. Instead, they would’ve squared off with the Sixers in the first round. Had that happened, the series would’ve more than likely gone the full seven games.
At the conclusion of the 2022-2023 season on April 9, Philadelphia and Cleveland will have met a total of seven times over the last two seasons. Philadelphia won all four games against Cleveland last season, but the margin of victory got smaller and smaller in each game. This season, the Cavs took the first game at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse this season at the end of November 113-85. Caris LeVert was the top scorer in that game with 22 points.
Philly travels to Cleveland on March 15, which will be the third and final regular season meeting between the rivals. The Cavs will be playing on the second night of a back-to-back after facing the Charlotte Hornets in North Carolina on March 14. On the flip side, the Sixers will have been off for a few days after hosting the Washington Wizards on March 12. The March 15 showdown between the 76ers and Cavaliers in Cleveland will be on ESPN.
The Cavs are 3-0 on their home floor when their games have been broadcast on ESPN or TNT. They improved to 2-0 against the Celtics this season courtesy of a 114-113 overtime win on Nov. 2 on ESPN, Cleveland and Boston will meet two more times in early March.The Cavaliers spoiled LeBron’s return with a 116-102 win on TNT on Dec. 6, Cleveland swept the LA Lakers this season. Despite Mitchell getting ejected against the Grizzlies on Groundhog Day, the Cavs still defeated the Grizzlies 128-113 on TNT.
But before the mid-March showdown, the Cavaliers travel to the “City of Brotherly Love” to meet the 76ers the day after Valentine’s Day. This game was not originally scheduled to be broadcasted on ESPN, as the Miami Heat at Brooklyn Nets game was in that slot, but because the Cavaliers and 76ers are practically dead even in the East, ESPN decided to replace the Heat-Nets matchup with the Cavaliers-76ers showdown.
As a result of the broadcast change, the Cavs will play a game on national television three weeks in a row (Feb. 2 against Memphis, Feb. 10 at New Orleans, Feb. 15 at Philadelphia). That shows what the league and media think of the Cavaliers in terms of their legitimacy as contenders.
At times this season, the Cavs have been overreliant on Darius Garland and Donovan Mitchell. This is due to Cleveland not having another playmaker who can create their own shot. Isaac Okoro has been playing better recently but not on a consistent basis. Caris LeVert hasn’t been providing the production the Cavs need him to. Which is why Cleveland shouldn’t have sat on their hands during Trade Deadline Day.
The Cavs should’ve gone out and acquired Cam Reddish or Josh Hart to be the third guy and take the pressure off Garland and Mitchell. That way, DG and “Spida” don’t need or have to score 30+ points every game to give the Cavs a chance to win.
Over the past seven games, Evan Mobley has been playing better, including scoring 28 points against the Pelicans in New Orleans. He could be emerging as the third option that the Cavs are searching for. For the second consecutive season, Mobley was selected to play in the 2023 Jordan Rising Stars Game. In the first matchup against the Sixers, he scored 16 points, grabbed eight rebounds, and had a field goal percentage of 80%.
The 76ers didn’t sit on their hands during the deadline. They acquired Jaden McDaniels in a four-team trade in which they sent Matisse Thybulle to the Portland Trail Blazers. McDaniels gives the Sixers another weapon to play alongside Embiid and James Harden.
McDaniels doesn’t have to start for the 76ers because they have Tobias Harris, who can also be the third option. By bringing in McDaniels, the Sixers can implement a small-ball lineup which gives the Cavaliers something else to prepare for.
If one were to drive from Cleveland to Philadelphia, it would take them approximately seven hours (six hours and 40 minutes to be precise). The two cities are separated by 433 miles or 697 kilometers.
Due to the enormity of these final two showdowns between the Cavaliers and Sixers, the time and distance is going to feel much less than what they actually are.