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The Cleveland Cavaliers look to get their first win of the preseason as they travel to Orlando to square off with the Magic in their last game before the regular season tips off.
Who: Cleveland Cavaliers vs. Orlando Magic
When: 7 p.m. ET
Where: Amway Center, Orlando, Florida
Enemy Blog: Pinstriped Post
TV: Fox Sports Ohio, NBA League Pass
Cavs injuries: LeBron James (OUT - ankle), Isaiah Thomas (OUT - hip)
Magic injuries: Terrence Ross (OUT - hamstring), Evan Fournier (QUESTIONABLE - ankle)
Three keys to the game
- Hopefully nobody else gets hurt. This is the final tuneup prior to the preseason, and a lot of juice was lost after LeBron tweaked his ankle against the Bulls, leaving his status in question for the opener against the Celtics.
- Let’s see how the young guys play. My guess is that Tyronn Lue won’t invest much time in playing the core rotation guys on the road with the regular season so close. They might start, but I’d be shocked if they’re playing more than 25 minutes each.
- The Magic are depressing. There’s almost no keepers on the roster outside of Aaron Gordon and hopefully Jonathan Isaac, and it’s wild that they also have almost no cap room on top of this talent deficient roster. They’re not going to be fun to watch this year, and that’s a bummer, but it’s the reality of the situation.
Key Matchup
Aaron Gordon looks like the only long-term keeper, and he’s played well so far in this preseason. It’ll be interesting to see how Jae Crowder handles him defensively, and whether he flashes playmaking skills as a point forward on certain possessions.
Fear the Sword’s Fearless Prediction
The Cavs will jump out to a lead early, and punt this one in the second half like every other game this season. Cavaliers 97, Magic 106.