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With two games left in their season, the Cleveland Cavaliers (22-48) are in the District of Columbia to take on Russell Westbrook and the Washington Wizards (32-38). Battling with the Chicago Bulls for the tenth and final spot in the play-in tournament, the Wizards will be out for blood against a Cavaliers team that is also playing for something. After their surprise win over the Boston Celtics, Cleveland is now tied with the Minnesota Timberwolves for the fifth-worst record in the NBA and has a 9.7% chance of landing the first-overall pick in the 2021 NBA Draft. Thankfully, everything is not lost as the Cavaliers still have a 39.5% chance of selecting in the top four of the draft.
Cleveland will say they aren’t tanking and the win over Boston was a major morale boost to a team that had lost far too many games. But, with their season almost over and Washington fighting for their playoff lives, this might turn into an ugly loss. Fast.
How to watch
Tipoff is at 7 p.m. Tune in on Bally Sports Ohio or NBA League Pass.
Starting Lineups
Cavaliers: Collin Sexton / Isaac Okoro / Dean Wade / Kevin Love / Jarrett Allen
Wizards: Russell Westbrook / Raul Neto / Garrison Matthews / Rui Hachimura / Alex Len
What to Watch For
Isaac Iguodala - Coming out of Auburn, Isaac Okoro was drawing some comparisons to a young Andre Iguodala. Defensively it’s stood out all season long as Okoro has consistently drawn the defensive assignment of the opposing team’s best player, much like Iguodala. But, it’s not just his defense, it’s his playmaking as well. In the month of May Okoro is averaging 3.1 assists per game - which is a huge uptick from his career average of 1.9 per game. We’re seeing parts of Okoro’s offensive repertoire evolve in real-time and it’s been awesome to see.
Final days for a few Cavaliers - After this game against Washington, Anderson Varejao’s 10-day contract is set to expire. Look for the team to re-sign him immediately so he can play out his last few games with the Wine and Gold. It also could be the last few games in a Cavaliers uniform for Kevin Love as well. There will always be speculation on Love’s future in Cleveland but based on how things transpired this season, we may be heading towards an end sooner instead of later. Cherish him while you still have him, folks. Despite his recent lumps if it wasn’t for Love there would be no 2016 title.