Cup of Cavs: Cleveland Cavaliers news and links for Wednesday, March 16

Mornings are better when you know the Cavs are playing later that evening.

The first sip

The Cleveland Cavaliers are taking on the Philadelphia 76ers tonight. The Cavs did a good job of limiting James Harden and Joel Embiid the best they could last game. Harden finished with 25 points on 6 of 10 shooting while the potential MVP was held to just 22 points after recording a 40 point triple double in their previous game.

The Cavs were able to slow down the Sixers, especially in the first quarter, by throwing their 3-2 zone at them which really helped with varying looks on Embiid. Evan Mobley was able to help down from the perimeter on Embiid while Jarrett Allen held his own in the post. They won’t have the ability to do that this time around without Allen.

Mobley has been fantastic recently. His 30 point performance against the Los Angeles Clippers on Monday night was nothing short of spectacular. It’ll be interesting to see if he can respond to a match up against what could be the MVP tonight. It may not go well for the rookie, but it’ll be interesting to see him read and adjust in real time.

In case you missed it

The Cavs got a bit of good news yesterday as Chris Haynes reported that Jarrett Allen will not be needing surgery and could be back before the end of the season. This is great news for the Cavs as they desperately need to get healthy before the end of the regular season if they want to avoid the play-in.

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Links of the day

Doc Rivers wants Sixers’ James Harden to do away with pass-first approach and be aggressive

Draymond Green makes a world of difference

Where the MVP race stands after Embiid vs. Jokic

Examining Dean Wade’s recent play for Cavs prior to absence vs. Clips