Do the Hawks have the defensive capacity to stop the Cavaliers?
The Cavaliers and Hawks have a preliminary matchup before their Friday NBA Cup game.
Who: Cleveland Cavaliers (17-1) vs. Atlanta Hawks (7-11)
Where: Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse - Cleveland Ohio
When: 7 p.m., Wednesday, Nov. 27
TV: Fanduel Sports Network Ohio (previously Bally Sports), NBA League Pass
Line: Cavs - 11.5
Expected Cavs starting lineup: Darius Garland, Donovan Mitchell, Isaac Okoro, Evan Mobley, Jarrett Allen.
Cavs injury report: Max Strus - OUT (ankle), Emoni Bates - OUT (knee), Dean Wade - OUT (ankle), Caris LeVert- OUT (ankle)
Expected Hawks starting lineup: Trae Young, Dyson Daniels, Jalen Johnson, Zaccharie Risacher, Clint Capela
Hawks injury report: Trae Young - QUESTIONABLE (achilles), Cody Zeller - OUT (personal), Seth Lundry - OUT (ankle), Dominick Barlow - OUT (G League), Mouhamed Gueye - OUT (G League), Keaton Wallace - OUT (G League)
Fear the Sword will be hosting a live stream watch party for select games this year on Playback. Join Tony Pesta as he reacts to all of the action.
Opponents can score in droves against this version of the Hawks. They are last in the NBA in opponent effective field goal percentage with opponents shooting an insane 57.1 EFG%. In their last five games, the Hawks are 1-4 and their opponents have found the holes in their defense as they have given up 120 plus points in three of those four losses.
Dyson Daniels on the defensive end has been their one true disruptor. He is the current steals-per-game leader with 3.2. Daniels also leads the league in total deflections with 108, which is 41 more than the second place. He has been a true menace this season and gives the Hawks a true wing defender. The Cavaliers can expect a lot of situations in which Daniels is matched up with Donovan Mitchell and Darius Garland. If Daniels can insert a presence in Wednesday’s contest the Cavaliers' supporting cast might have to take up more of the playmaking duties.
While the memes came flowing in when Ty Jerome was named the MVP of September before training camp, Jerome quickly showed that there was truth behind the claim. He has been simply a revelation for the Cavaliers this season. Jerome is averaging 12.6 points, 3.8 assists, and 1.3 steals per game. He is also on an absolute heater from three leading the league at 54.4% from the perimeter.
Jerome has also proven that he is not a one-note player. He has been a pest on the ball for scorers, showing a knack for when to pickpocket opposing players. This hasn’t been something that Jerome has been renowned for in the past. Head coach Kenny Atkinson has empowered and raised the defensive ceilings of him and Garland. The guards are both playing with an aggressiveness to cut into passing lanes and pressing players on the ball to force turnovers. With Jerome excelling on both ends it’s no wonder why HoopsHype has Jerome leading the Sixth Man of the Year race according to their Global Rating.
With the Cavaliers (1-1) and Hawks (2-1) set to play each other again in their NBA Cup matchup on Friday, one would wonder how much either team will be pushing themselves in this matchup.
Both teams need to win out to claim the group. The Hawks eked out a 117-116 win against the Celtics and a 129-117 win against the Wizards before dropping a game to the Bulls. A win would clinch the group as they have the tiebreaker over Boston.
The Cavaliers are coming off their only loss of the season against the Celtics in group-stage play. No team made the knockout tournament with more than one loss last season. Losing for either of these teams is the death nail in any aspiration to win the league’s newest prize.
