NBA: Cleveland Cavaliers vs. Portland Trail Blazers Preview, Odds, Prediction

The Cleveland Cavaliers and the Portland Trail Blazers promise a very interesting battle at the Moda Center in Oregon. For the moment, the Cavs are fifth in the Eastern Conference and push well, while Portland visibly slowed down compared to the start of the year once they’ve been one of the best teams in the league. Cleveland is on tour through the West, meeting some of the top teams in the league, while Portland came back home from a three-game road trip and managed to lose to the Magic. 

Preview

Cleveland Cavaliers (26-16, -125) were defeated in Salt Lake City by the Utah Jazz last night, 116-114. It was a very narrow defeat for Bickerstaff’s crew, but still a defeat. The game was highly competitive, with both teams giving their best, yet in the end, the hosts had more luck.

Donovan Mitchell was motivated to play his best basketball in his first return to Vivint Arena, following the trade in which he had to hit the road and land in Ohio. Spida dropped 46 points in his former house, being unstoppable for his former teammates.

The problem for the Cavs was that apart from Darius Garland, who had 21 points with six boards and six assists, there weren’t any players capable of helping. Jarrett Allen picked up an injury after only seven minutes and will be sidelined for this event. 

Portland Trail Blazers (19-21, +105) have four losses in a row, and that’s a sign of a crisis. Lillard and the boys were on a road trip losing all three games during that period – in Minnesota, Indianapolis, and Toronto.

But what made things worse and concerned their fans was a loss against a mediocre Orlando Magic at the Moda Center. Orlando won 109-106, rebuffing the Blazers’ push in the late part of the event. The hosts oscillated too much, allowing the guests to make double-digit runs and get back after the same, which is what cost them in the end. 

The Blazers were terrible for three, hitting only six of their 35 downtown attempts, which is 17.1%, one of the worst they had in the recent year. Lillard had 30 points, making only two of 10 three-pointers, Nurkic scored 22 and had ten boards, while Jerami Grant added 16 and Anfernee Simons 15.

Head to Head Games

The first game of the year in Ohio saw the Cavs winning without too many problems, 114-96. Mitchell had 34 points, Garland 24, and 12 assists, while Allen scored 24 with 13 boards. Nurk had a team-high for the guests, 22 buckets, Grant 21, while Simmons scored 20. Lillard didn’t play in this one.

Prediction

The Blazers need to win this one, otherwise, they are deep in trouble. Now, their win imperative isn’t the biggest reason why we pick the hosts to triumph. We also have fatigue on the Cavs’ side, and the fact that Allen isn’t playing, which is a big hit for Bickerstaff and his boys, especially on the defensive side. He is an elite rim protector, which could be a big issue for the Cavs without him, especially with Nurk in good shape.

Pick: Blazers win +105