At 9:30 on December 28, Beijing time, the NBA regular season continued, and the Mavericks hosted the Cavaliers.
The Cavaliers are 17-13 and ranked 7th in the East, winning four of their last five games, and are in good shape overall. With 112 points per game, it ranks 23rd in the league and concedes 111.9 points per game, making it the seventh-fewest teams in the league and has an 8-6 away record.
One of the problems encountered by the Cavaliers this season is that the core players are absent from more games, the team's second scorer Garland (20.7 points per game, 5.9 assists per game) suffered a jaw fracture, the third scorer Mobley Jr. (16 points and 10.5 rebounds per game) had left knee surgery, both of them were unable to play, and the top scorer Mitchell (27.7 points per game) has missed three games before, and the status of this game has been upgraded to doubtful, and whether he can play will be decided before the game. Another questionable player is LeVert, the team's No. 4 scorer who averages 15.1 points per game.
Strus, who averages 14.3 points per game, and Niang, who averages 8 points per game, are the only two full-time players for the Cavaliers, and center Allen is averaging 13.3 points and 8.6 rebounds per game, which is not bad.
The Mavericks are 18-12 and ranked 5th in the West, scoring 119.3 points per game, ranking 7th in the league, conceding 117.8 points per game, and are the 10th most conceded team in the league, with a home record of 8-6.
The Mavericks beat the Suns 128-114 in the Christmas game, and Doncic exploded with 50 points and 15 assists to dominate the game. Doncic is averaging 33.5 points, 8.5 rebounds and 9.4 assists per game this season, and his individual performance is impeccable.
However, the Mavericks are also facing more serious injury impacts, Doncic is doubtful for the game before the game, and Irving, Josh Green, and Kleber continue to be absent.
Hardaway Jr., who averages 17.6 points per game, is the third leading scorer outside of "Eastern Europe", Derrick Jones Jr. averages 10.4 points per game, and Lively, Gwee, Exum and others also average more than 9 points per game, and they are also important role players for the team.
The Mavericks, led by Doncic, are a standard projection offensive team, ranking 7th in the league in offensive efficiency, 23rd in the league in defensive efficiency, second in the league in three-point shooting and shooting, 17th in the league in shooting percentage, and 14th in the league in three-point shooting percentage.
The Cavaliers are a team with a good defense and average offense, ranking 10th in the league in defensive efficiency and 19th in offensive efficiency. Ranks 13th in the league in shooting percentage and 23rd in three-point shooting percentage.
This game will be a battle of spear and shield, if Doncic, Mitchell, LeVert 3 can play, the offensive data of the two sides should still be guaranteed, and the suspense of the game depends on the appearance and on-court status of these core players.