Cleveland is the wrong team to see while you're short on bigs. Evan Mobley scored 27 and Jarrett Allen added 25 in the win in Milwaukee, which was the Cavs' first road win of the season. A 48-point 2nd quarter turned a 1-point deficit into a 26-point halftime lead. Donovan Mitchell needed only 15 points that night and still finished a team-best +31.
The Cavaliers have been very good at Rocket Arena, but not dominant. They're 3-0 there, but Brooklyn lost by 4 and Minnesota by 2. Their one loss came in Atlanta by 3. This team scores, with 121 or more in 4 of the last 5 games, and that's a problem for an OKC group that has given up 119 and 120 in its last 2.
Cleveland's only listed absence is Jaylon Tyson, who missed the Milwaukee game with an ankle sprain. His status for Monday is the one open question on the home side. For OKC, the question is whether Gilgeous-Alexander can win a game almost by himself against 2 bigs who just combined for 52. The Thunder's defense carried them through a 3-0 start. Without Holmgren protecting the rim, that defense now has to deal with Mobley and Allen for 48 minutes.
Both teams are 4-2, which makes this look like a fair fight. It probably isn't, at least not until OKC gets some of its players back. If Gilgeous-Alexander goes off, the Thunder can steal one. If he doesn't, it's 3 road losses in a row, all by double digits.
