Feb 27, 2024; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Dallas Mavericks guard Kyrie Irving (11) reacts to fans in the first quarter against the Cleveland Cavaliers at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-Imagn Images / David Richard-Imagn Images
The Dallas Mavericks have lost three straight games and will play host to the Cleveland Cavaliers on Friday, who have lost just four games all season. This will be a tough matchup for a Dallas team still trying to figure out how to play without Luka Doncic.
Dallas most recently lost to the Houston Rockets on Wednesday, as Houston blitzed Kyrie Irving on almost every action to get the ball out of his hands, and that led to the Mavericks having 20 turnovers. Had they been able to keep their turnovers down or limit their fouls in the first quarter, they might've been able to sneak away with a win, but once they went down by double-digits, it was too big of a gap to overcome.
Cleveland owns the league's best record and has won eight straight games, all by double-digits, by an average margin of 16 PPG. Evan Mobley's emerging as a consistent third scorer, mixed with the infusion of new coach Kenny Atkinson, has been exactly what the team needed. They were a good team last year, but they're a machine this season. Donovan Mitchell is averaging his lowest PPG since his rookie season, but his efficiency from three has never been better. Darius Garland has been healthy so far, helping to engineer the league's best offense. This is a difficult team to handle for anyone, much less a Mavericks squad dealing with injuries.
Here's everything you need to know to watch this matchup between the Mavs and Cavs.
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