Cleveland is on a four-game winning streak after dominating the Utah Jazz on Wednesday night, and it looks like they've turned a corner on their season. Charlotte is on a hot streak as well, having won three games in a row and eight of their last nine.
In the first matchup between these two teams, the Cavs won 97-88 after starting the game on a 21-0 run.
Projected Starting Lineups
Cleveland Cavaliers (23-20)
G Kyrie Irving – 21.0 ppg, 5.3 apg
G Iman Shumpert – 9.3 ppg, 3.4 rpg
F LeBron James – 26.0 ppg, 7.4 apg, 5.5 rpg
F Kevin Love – 17.7 ppg, 10.4 rpg
C Timofey Mozgov– 10.3 ppg, 9.3 rpg
Charlotte Hornets (18-25)
G Kemba Walker – 19.0 ppg, 5.9 apg
G Gerald Henderson – 10.3 ppg, 3.0 rpg
F Michael Kidd-Gilchrist – 9.7 ppg, 7.2 rpg
F Cody Zeller – 7.6 ppg, 5.4 rpg
C Al Jefferson – 17.6 ppg, 8.0 rpg
What to watch for:
How will Shumpert play?
Iman Shumpert is set to make his Cleveland Cavaliers debut tonight, and is expected to be inserted into the starting lineup. There will be a lot of rust he'll have to shake off from his shoulder injury, but he needs to do it quick because he'll be guarding Kemba Walker. Cleveland's starters have been flowing of late with J.R. Smith in the lineup - all five starters have scored 15 or more points in the last two games - and it'll be interesting to see how Shumpert fits into that group.
Who starts the fastest?
In the first matchup, the game was essentially over five minutes into the game because the Cavs opened on a 21-0 run. Obviously, Charlotte can't allow Cleveland to get out to a start like that, but if they can hang with the Cavs for the first few minutes, they'll allow their stifling defense to take over the game. If that happens, the Hornets suddenly have the advantage in this one.
Prediction: Cavs win 102-94
This is the stereotypical trap game for the Cavs with a showdown with Oklahoma City on deck. Add in the fact Cleveland destroyed Charlotte in their first matchup, and they could sleepwalk through this game. That’ll keep things closer that it should be, but the Hornets aren't good enough offensively to exploit the Cavs’ suspect defense.
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