3 Things to watch for in Cavs vs Celtics

The Cleveland Cavaliers are hoping to get back on track with a Sunday matchup against the Boston Celtics. Here are three things to watch for in this game.

Will we ever move past this?

The Cavs’ injury list is once again piling up as Jarrett Allen, Sam Merrill, Lonzo Ball and Larry Nance Jr. are OUT while Craig Porter Jr. is questionable with a hamstring strain.

Cleveland has been dealt a bad hand with injuries this season. They’ve hardly played with their expected starting lineup and won’t get an opportunity to do that tonight. Still, they have four of their most important players available in Darius Garland, Donovan Mitchell, De’Andre Hunter and Evan Mobley.

Finding some momentum with this group is important. The team hasn’t had an identity all year long. But having those four on the court should give them an opportunity to find a winning formula.

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Mitchell is scoring the ball at an unstoppable rate right now. He notched his second 40+ point game of the season on Friday, scoring 42 points against the Atlanta Hawks in a loss. Mitchell is averaging a career-high 30.6 points per game entering this match versus Boston.

The Cavs have come to rely on Mitchell’s offensive explosions. His on-ball brilliance has been one of the only things keeping them above .500 during this stressful start to the season. You always have a chance if Mitchell is scoring like this.

Still, Cleveland shouldn’t feel satisfied with Mitchell doing it all on his own. As great as it is to watch — we are really hoping that someone else finally takes some of the weight off his shoulders. Whether it’s Mobley, Garland or Hunter, someone needs to lend a helping hand.

The Cavaliers have the 8th-best defense in the NBA according to Cleaning the Glass. That might surprise you, considering how frustrating it can be watching opponents rain three-pointers or rack up second-chance points. But it’s the truth.

Cleveland has built this defense behind a few principles. First, they want to generate turnovers by jumping passing lanes and gambling for deflections. The Cavs are currently winning this bet by generating turnovers at the 7th highest rate in the league. They’ve also improved to 12th in defensive rebounding, another stat that feels better than the eye-test.

This will be the Cavaliers’ 21st game of the season. Meaning, we’re moving past the stage of small-sample-size theater and into the broader trends that will define this team. So the question is: will the Cavs continue to establish themselves as an elite defensive team, or will the advanced analytics eventually decline until they match the eye-test?

Boston enters this game with the league’s 6th-best offense. This is a good opportunity for the Cavs to prove who they are.