On Monday the Cavs beat the Hornets by a comfortable 23 points with a combination of excellent defense (92 points allowed) and awesome ball movement (41 assists on 46 field goals). That formula should work again tonight if the Cavs can replicate it. But they’ll have to do it on the road this time.
LaMelo Ball, Mark Williams, Seth Curry, and Cody Martin are out for the Hornets. Ball has only played 22 games this year. Curry played just eight games for the Hornets after being acquired at the deadline before he got hurt almost four weeks ago. Williams and Martin are starters who combine for 20 points and 13 rebounds.
Wade and Mitchell are out for the Cavs but Max Strus is listed as a game time decision.
The Cavs did a great job on Miles Bridges on Monday, holding him to 5-for-14 from the field. Bridges averages 21.3 ppg. Rookie Brandon Miller led the Hornets with 24 points and 8 rebounds; nobody else scored more than 13 as the Hornets managed to shoot just 42.5%.
The Cavs had five players score between 14-17 points so the scoring was very balanced in addition to the season-high 41 assists. The Cavs shot 51.5% from the field which is exactly what JBB is looking for - a ton of assists leading to a high shooting percentage. The Cavs also hit their 3’s, shooting 41.5% from deep.
So it’s just a matter of whether the Cavs will be overconfident and have a letdown against this team after their convincing win on Monday. It looks like the personnel for both teams will be the same unless Strus can go. The Cavs might have Marcus Morris Sr for the entire game this time unless he decides to flatten one of the Hornets again.
Injury reportCLEVELAND
Dean Wade - OUT (knee)
Ty Jerome - OUT (ankle)
Max Strus - QUESTIONABLE (knee)
Donovan Mitchell - OUT (knee)
CHARLOTTE
LaMelo Ball - OUT (ankle)
Seth Curry - OUT (ankle)
Mark Williams - OUT (back)
Cody Martin - OUT (ankle)
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Game Previews courtesy of @Wham with the Right Hand
Game Previews courtesy of @Wham with the Right Hand