The Oklahoma City Thunder came out of the break a bit sluggish on Friday night as they hosted the Brooklyn Nets, but they found some rhythm as the game wore on to pick up a 105-86 win. The competition picks up a bit on Sunday afternoon, however, as the Cleveland Cavaliers come to town for a noon tip-off.
The Cavs were already in the thick of the Eastern Conference standings before trading for James Harden, but since his arrival, they have yet to lose. Five straight wins, which includes three on the road, has Cleveland fans thinking they may be able to make a run at a championship.
After a dominant regular season last year, Cleveland faltered in the playoffs, losing in the second round 4-1 to the Indiana Pacers. Next to Donovan Mitchell, Harden is another ball-dominant option who operates as more of a distributor these days, which is making an already dangerous offense even more so.
OKC is still without reigning MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, as well as Jalen Williams and Ajay Mitchell, so scoring hasn’t come so easy lately. The defense is still operating at a high level, however, which is what the Thunder will need to lean on if they want to slow down Cleveland’s potent offense. Chet Holmgren and Isaiah Hartenstein are a fun matchup for Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen, so the deciding factor in this will likely come down to taking care of the ball in the backcourt. If the Thunder’s depth can overwhelm Cleveland’s star power, perhaps OKC can give the fans a win.
Game Details
Tip-Off: 12 PM CT
Location: Paycom Center (Oklahoma City, Oklahoma)
Television: ABC
Radio: WWLS 98.1FM OKC The Sports Animal
Twitter: Follow @ZacharyLowNBA for live tweets and discussion during the game
Game Notes: Oklahoma City Thunder Official Game Notes, Cleveland Cavaliers Official Game Notes
Thunder
- PG: Cason Wallace
- SG: Luguentz Dort
- SF: Aaron Wiggins
- PF: Chet Holmgren
- C: Isaiah Hartenstein
Cavaliers
- PG: James Harden
- SG: Donovan Mitchell
- SF: Dean Wade
- PF: Evan Mobley
- C: Jarrett Allen
Injury Report
Thunder
- Alex Caruso (sprained left ankle) is OUT.
- Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (strained abdominal) is OUT.
- Ajay Mitchell (strained abdominal) is OUT.
- Thomas Sorber (right ACL surgical recovery) is OUT.
- Jalen Williams (strained right hamstring) is OUT.
Cavaliers
- Tristen Enaruna (G League — two-way) is OUT.
- Riley Minix (G League — two-way) is OUT.
- Max Strus (left foot surgery recovery – Jones fracture) is OUT.
Head-to-Head
- Since arriving in Oklahoma City in 2008, the Thunder is 17-16 against the Cavs (9-8 at home, 8-8 on the road).
- Since arriving in Oklahoma City in 2008, the Thunder has won the season series against the Cavs 4 times, lost 5 times, and tied 8 times.
- Last season, the Thunder tied the season series with the Cavs 1-1 (1-0 at home, 0-1 on the road).
- OKC is 1-0 against Cleveland so far this season (0-0 at home, 1-0 on the road).