Cavs vs. Mavs preview and gamethread

The Cavs will welcome a stunned Mavericks team to Cleveland.

The Cleveland Cavaliers will welcome Kyrie Irving and the shell-shocked Dallas Mavericks to Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse for a Sunday matinee.

Oh, and the Mavs just traded Luka Doncic to the Lakers.

Who: Cleveland Cavaliers (39-9) vs. Dallas Mavericks (26-23)

Where: Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse – Cleveland, OH

When: 3:30pm EST

TV: FanDuel Sports Network

Line: Cavaliers – 12.5

Expected Cavs starting lineup: Darius Garland, Donovan Mitchell, Max Strus, Evan Mobley, Jarrett Allen.

Cavs injury report: Caris LeVert – QUESTIONABLE (wrist), Isaac Okoro – OUT (shoulder), Dean Wade – OUT (knee), Craig Porter Jr. – QUESTIONABLE (illness), J.T. Thor – OUT (G League), Luke Travers – OUT (G League)

Expected Mavericks starting lineup: Kyrie Irving, Spencer Dinwiddie, Klay Thompson, P.J Washington, Daniel Gafford

Mavericks injury report: Luke Doncic – OUT (traded to Lakers), Kyrie irving – QUESTIONABLE (shoulder), Daniel Gafford – QUESTIONABLE (ankle), Maxi Kleber – OUT (trded to Lakers), Dereck Lively II – OUT (ankle, stress fracture), P.J. Washington- QUESTIONABLE (knee), Dwight Powell – OUT (hip)

What to watch for

The Strus will be loose

The Cavs will continue to be without a few key wings in Dean Wade and Isaac Okoro, meaning Max Strus will have to continue taking on a greater role on both sides of the ball. Even with Doncic now…traded…to Los Angeles (?!?!), Dallas still has Kyrie Irving and Klay Thompson to contend with. Strus will likely be tasked with picking up one of them on defense, no easy feat (though, much easier without Doncic orchestrating things). Irving scored 28 points in their last game and Klay Thompson is shooting 53% from deep in his last three games. Cavs fans know first-hand what both of those players are capable of.

Strus has attempted at least four threes per game since Wade went down with an injury, and the Cavs need that spacing coupled with his defense. Strus’ willingness to body up and get in his defender’s space is important.

Gafford vs. Allen

Not too long ago, Mavs center Daniel Gafford was listed as a potential trade candidate. However, since taking over for the injured Dereck Lively II, Gafford has been on a tear. In his last nine games, Gafford has scored double-digit points in all but one of them and has a double-double in six of them. At one point, over a two-game stretch, Gafford was 15-15 from the field. But he gets a tough customer Sunday in Jarrett Allen.

Dallas is not a particularly strong rebounding team, but they are rated higher for the season than the Cavs. In what could be a scrappy game, the work on the interior could be the difference.

Don’t be surprised if this is a blowout

That is a lengthy injury report for Dallas, who lost in Detroit just a few nights ago and allowed Cade Cunningham to drop 40 points on them. This is a team that is searching for an identity without Doncic (something they will have to get used to now) and, even when healthy, doesn’t quite look right. If Irving cannot go for Dallas, a lot of pressure will be put on Spencer Dinwiddie to run the offense and keep up with the NBA-best scoring attack in the Cavs. Gafford and P.J. Washington are iffy as well, meaning the Mavs could be extremely thin on the interior too. The margin for error is already tight for the Mavs and could be even more minuscule if they are missing additional key players.

Luka was just traded?

The vibes around this organization right now must be more toxic than Chernobyl. Dallas, in the middle of the night, upended the roster in such a way that the collective basketball world thought it was false. Players are anguished online. League executives are shouting expletive-laden tirades into their empty, moon-lit kitchens.

There are maybe four players one could argue Doncic could be traded for. An aging Anthony Davis isn’t one of them.

Pour one out for a Mavs fan. They need it.