Cavs at Celtics preview and gamethread

Two finals favorites duke it out under the bright lights

The Cleveland Cavaliers look to show why they are at the top of the Eastern Conference against the title favorite Boston Celtics.

Who: Cleveland Cavaliers (48-10) vs. Boston Celtics (42-17)

Where: TD Garden, Boston, MA

When: 7:30pm EST

TV: ESPN, FanDuel Sports Network

Line: Cavaliers -5.5

Expected Cavs starting lineup: Donovan Mitchell, Max Strus, Deandre Hunter, Evan Mobley, Jarrett Allen

Cavs injury report: Luke Travers – OUT (G League), Emoni Bates – OUT (G League), JT Thor – OUT (G League)

Expected Celtics starting lineup: Derrick White, Jrue Holiday, Jason Tatum, Al Horford, Kristaps Porzingis

Celtics injury report: Jaylen Brown – QUESTIONABLE (thigh), Jrue Holiday – QUESTIONABLE (hand), Luke Kornet – QUESTIONABLE (personal)

What to watch for

Pushing the Chips to the middle

It took 0.1 seconds to see the logic behind the acquisition of De’Andre Hunter. The Cavaliers had their eyes set on future (ideally postseason) matchups with the Celtics. Now, as the Cavaliers and Celtics close out their regular season play, the Cavaliers have stockpiled tall athletic wings to slow down the buzzsaw of the Celtics.

While the talk of the Cavaliers needing taller bodies to slow down the likes of Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown is 100% valid, the offense needed this boost as well. Hunter provides a bonafide shooter at 6’8” who can challenge the wings of the Celtics more so than the likes of Georges Niang, Isaac Okoro, and Dean Wade have. The Cavaliers in the past have gotten cute with lineups to find out how to produce offense. This usually came at a price, whether it be defensive liabilities or cold shooting nights.

The Cavaliers now possess capable wings, something that hasn’t been uttered since 2018. Friday, like the previous matchups, could be asterisked by injuries if Brown and/or Holiday can’t go. The proof of concept is not going to be there for the postseason, but the Cavaliers get one last litmus test against the Eastern Conference champ gatekeeper.

Is everything status quo for Boston?

You can call this a knee-jerk reaction. Feel free to eviscerate me in the comments. However, the Celtics, off the heels of a blowout loss to the Detroit Pistons, look to be more flawed than this time last year. Is this a case of coasting? Possibly. Or is their boom-or-bust philosophy catching up to them?

The Celtics are shooting 53.8% of their shot attempts from behind the arc. This is nothing new for them. The Celtics had a similar identity last season; however, their efficiency was better. There lies an issue not spoken of as much as the praise Boston receives. Tatum is playing his most efficient basketball and covering up the woes of a Celtics team that is too talented to play this style of ball. The Celtics are the most mortal they have been in recent seasons, and they are currently coasting by on their reputation.