Cavs News: Twice the Heat, Stevens’ impact, Wade criticism
Tonight, the Cleveland Cavaliers will play the Miami Heat down in South Beach, then enjoy a mini-
vacation
work day in Miami before playing the Heat again on Friday. This two-game set, sometimes called a “baseball series” was placed into the schedule to help reduce travel for teams.
We discussed a few weeks ago how these two-game sets can help the Cavs simulate the feel of the playoffs, but they also can have an outsized impact on the standings. If a player on either team is injured during the short window of the series, they are likely to miss both games. That’s probably what will happen with Kyle Lowry for the Heat.
That means one injury to Lowry results in his absence from 50 percent of the team’s matchups this year; the two teams have split the season series, so the outcome of this week’s games will determine the tiebreaker (in the unlikely event it is needed). If the Cavs sweep, the Heat’s chances of getting out of the Play-In Tournament look grim; if the Heat sweep, suddenly all sorts of outcomes are in play for the East.
Thankfully, despite how banged up Donovan Mitchell has been in recent days, he is not listed on the injury report for tonight’s game; in fact, no Cavaliers player is. Kevin Love is questionable to play for the Heat, which would be his first game against the Cavs since asking for a buyout earlier this year. There are plenty of storylines for a key two-game series that will have a major imprint on the East standings.
More Cavs news
Lamar Stevens didn’t play a single minute of the first three quarters against the Boston Celtics on Monday, then didn’t miss a single minute upon entering at the start of the fourth. He was everywhere on the court, tearing down offensive rebounds, hitting timely shots and playing excellent defense. That inspired Ismail Sy to write about unleashing the dog and letting Stevens have a permanent spot in the Cavaliers’ rotation.
Also on the website, John Suchan dug into the criticism being levied against Dean Wade right now, who has struggled to find his place in J.B. Bickerstaff’s rotation. Suchanexplains how Wade is one of the team’s most valuable role players and fights back against unfair critiques of his game.
NBA news
The Philadelphia 76ers won easily over the Minnesota Timberwolves to keep pace in the Eastern Conference, but star guard James Harden exited the game with a left foot injury; he missed a month or so earlier in the season with a right foot strain. If Harden is out for any length of time their chances of hanging on to the No. 3 seed get shakier.
On the other side of the Cavs in the standings, the New York Knicks finally lost, surprisingly falling at home to the Charlotte Hornets. That dropped the Knicks two games behind the Cavaliers, with the Brooklyn Nets winning to stay three games back (and one from the Knicks).
In the West the churn in the middle of the standings continued, with the Oklahoma City Thunder, Dallas Mavericks and Los Angeles Lakers picking up key wins as they Golden State Warriors, Utah Jazz and Memphis Grizzlies all took losses. Three games separate fifth-seeded Dallas from 13th-seeded Utah.
Next. 2 areas where Cavs’ Darius Garland needs to improve moving forward. dark
Coming up: The Cavaliers play the Miami Heat tonight at 7:30 pm ET.