San Antonio Spurs at Cleveland Cavaliers Game Preview

San Antonio Spurs at Cleveland Cavaliers Game Preview

dmh
3 years ago
2 min read

With Dejounte Murray continuing to come into his own and Jakob Poeltl proving to be good enough to be the everyday center, there aren’t too many holes on the roster. Look for the Spurs to consider trading either one or both of Patty Mills and Rudy Gay in the next week, though.

Cleveland got an impressive win over Boston and now seeks to make it two in a row. When they played a week away, the Pelicans clobbered them in every area. Last Friday night was an evening to forget for the Cavs and all of their players as well. The hope will be that things can be better for them seven days later. Start the weekend with a win.

ODDS:

The Spurs are a -2 favorite.

Spurs Seeking to Beat Cavs

The teams never got to meet in the first half of the year as the Spurs didn’t have enough eligible players in February as contact tracing was conducted. So now, finally, in March, the teams get together for the first time in the year. And this promises to be a matchup that shows the talent of the youngsters. 

From Murray to Lonnie Walker and Keldon Johnson, there is plenty of talent on the Spurs. The team is going to remain without DeMar DeRozan in this one, so the other guys will look to be more playmaker-like. That news is good for the first-round pick Devin Vassell, who has gotten a lot of minutes with DeMar out. He’s got a bright future in the league as a defensive stopper. 

Luka Samanic has been playing some good minutes after hardly seeing the floor last year, so if he gets out there, he can give Coach Pop some buckets.

Cavs Looking for a New Streak

There have been three occasions this year where the Cavs have won at least three games in a row. Good things have happened in trios for Cleveland, and a win tonight could put them 2/3 of the way to doing it yet again. Collin Sexton has a tough matchup with Murray, who is one of the best defensive point guards in the NBA. 

Darius Garland was terrific against Boston as he poured in 25 points. He and Sexton combined for 54 points and 12 assists, which is just what you want from your rising stars backcourt. They’ve gotten good PF minutes from Dean Wade as a Larry Nance Jr. backup, which is terrific after he shined as a starter.

If JaVale McGee can be effective in his minutes off the bench, it can go a long way towards a Cavaliers victory.

Cavs Keys to Victory

  1. Collin Sexton 30+ points
  2. Team has fewer than 15 turnovers
  3. 13+ threes
  4. Don’t let Dejounte and Lonnie Walker get going.

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