Down 2-0 and getting bullied, the Cavaliers walked into a must-win Game 3 and got 35 from Donovan Mitchell and a step-back dagger from James Harden to steal it 116-109. That's the good news. The bad news: they still trail this series 2-1, and Detroit doesn't seem the least bit rattled by a road loss.
Cade Cunningham went for a 27-10-10 triple-double in Game 3 and Cleveland still won, which tells you a couple of things. One, Cade is a problem regardless of result. Two, he coughed it up 8 times on 10-for-27 shooting, and the Cavs absolutely cannot count on that kind of inefficiency twice in a row. Max Strus's fourth-quarter steal-and-score was the swing play that flipped Game 3, and Cleveland needs more of that low-key stuff from the role guys with Mitchell drawing every defensive game plan.
Detroit's backcourt depth is the swing factor on the injury sheet. Kevin Huerter (adductor) and Caris LeVert (heel contusion) are both questionable, and losing either one thins out a bench that's been doing real work in this series. The Pistons have won 4 of their last 5 overall, so any sign of slippage matters more for the home team than for them.
- Day-To-DayCaris LeVert G — LeVert is questionable for Monday's Game 4 against the Cavaliers due to a right heel contusion.
- OutKevin Huerter G — Huerter (adductor) is listed as questionable for Monday's Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals against the Cavaliers.
Pinnacle has the Cavs at -166 with a 4-point spread and a total of 214, which is essentially the market saying "Cleveland should win this at home, but don't expect a runaway." Cleveland is 1-2 in their last 5 and has now lost a home game in this series. The market still trusts them to even it up — the players have to actually do it.
Bottom line: a Cavs win sends it back to Detroit 2-2 with all the pressure flipped. A loss and they're staring at 3-1 with two of the next three potentially on the road. Harden showed up when it mattered last time. Mitchell torched them. Now do it without the must-win-or-die framing and see if there's actually a real series here.