Cleveland is playing as well as any team in the league and have won seven games in a row, the latest coming in a 103-95 win over the Detroit Pistons last night. Portland had their game against the Nets postponed on Monday night, and haven't played since they beat the Washington Wizards on Saturday.
In the first matchup of the year between these two teams, Portland won 101-82 on November 4.
Projected Starting Lineups
Cleveland Cavaliers (25-20)
G Kyrie Irving – 21.3 ppg, 5.2 apg
G J.R. Smith – 14.3 ppg, 3.2 rpg
F LeBron James – 26.4 ppg, 7.4 apg, 5.6 rpg
F Kevin Love – 17.3 ppg, 10.3 rpg
C Timofey Mozgov– 9.4 ppg, 8.8 rpg
Portland Trail Blazers (32-13)
G Damian Lillard –22.0 ppg, 6.7 apg
G Wesley Matthews – 16.5 ppg, 3.4 rpg
F Nicolas Batum – 9.1 ppg, 5.2 rpg
F LaMarcus Aldridge – 23.3 ppg, 10.2 rpg
C Chris Kaman – 9.5 ppg, 6.8 rpg
What to watch for:
Who plays with more energy?
Portland will be well rested because they haven't played in four days, while Cleveland is playing the second game of a back-to-back. The Cavs looked worn out against the Pistons last night - only LeBron James and Kyrie Irving scored in double-digits - and they might run out of gas tonight. If they can't feed off the home crowd and match Portland's intensity, they won't win.
Damian Lillard vs. Kyrie Irving
This is an underlying storyline every time these two teams play, and it's worth keeping an eye on tonight. Lillard took offense to being passed over by Team USA in favor of Irving, and has made a point of wanting to outplay Irving every chance he gets. Whoever wins this matchup will give their team a major advantage.
Prediction: Trail Blazers win 113-106
The game will be close until the fourth quarter when I think Cleveland will start to run out of gas. This one will be highly entertaining and come down to a couple of key plays late, and I think Portland will be able to make more of those because they're fresher.
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