What to watch for in Cavaliers vs. Mavericks

The Cavs will play host to Kyrie Irving and Luka Doncic in a cross conference matchup.

Kyrie Irving went four years between his last game as a Cleveland Cavalier and his first as a member of an opposing team, from 2017 to 2021. A lot has changed for the Cavs (37-19) and Irving, now a member of the Dallas Mavericks (33-24), but what has not is his place in Cleveland sports history. That will all be put to the side Tuesday night when Irving and the Mavs come to Cleveland to play the Cavaliers in what should be a different game than the last time these two teams played in the Lone Star State.

What: Cleveland Cavaliers vs Dallas Mavericks

Where: Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse

When: 7:30 p.m.

TV: Bally Sports Ohio, Bally Sports Southwest

Spread: CLE -4.5

Expected Cavs Starting Lineup: Darius Garland, Donovan Mitchell, Max Strus, Evan Mobley, Jarrett Allen

Cavs Injury Report: Tristan Thompson (suspension, OUT), Ty Jerome (ankle, OUT), Isaiah Mobley (G League, OUT), Emoni Bates (G League, OUT), Pete Nance (G League, OUT)

Expected Mavericks Starting Lineup: Kyrie Irving, Luka Doncic, Josh Green, P.J. Washington, Dereck Lively

Mavericks Injury Report: Luka Doncic (nose, PROBABLE), Greg Brown III (G League, OUT), Dante Exum (knee, DOUBTFUL), Josh Green (elbow, PROBABLE), Maxi Kleber (nose, PROBABLE), Dereck Lively II (nose, PROBABLE), AJ Lawson (G League, OUT), Olivier-Maxence Prosper (G League, OUT), Brandon Williams (G League, OUT)

What to watch for: can the offense keep up?

The Cavs offense has struggled a bit as they continue to integrate Darius Garland back into the starting lineup. That could be problematic with the Mavericks coming to town, as they have one of the better offenses in the league. Dallas is tied for seventh in points per game, second in three-point makes per game, and ninth in both true shooting and effective field goal percentage. Irving and fellow superstar Luka Doncic can make life incredibly difficult on opposing defenses, even the best ones.

That means the Cavs are going to need to either turn defense into offense, win big on the glass (like they did back in late December versus the Mavs), or simply out-gun Dallas. Out of those three scenarios, the first two are much more likely. Cleveland has the second-best defense in the NBA and force the eighth-most turnovers. The Cavs are also third in the league in defensive rebounding and out-rebounded the Mavs 57 to 37 in their previous outing. The Mavs have won seven of their last ten games and are in a different position than they were two months ago, but the Cavs can exploit some weaknesses without having to get in a heavyweight fight on the offensive side — one that they may not be able to win.

One stat to watch for: three-point takes

Dallas an incredibly apt three-point shooting team, as expected given their backcourt. But the Cavs will need to make it a priority to get more shots up from deep. Cleveland is 19th in three-point percentage but 12th in made threes per game. The Mavs will get theirs on offense and the Cavs will need to be more aggressive than they have been of late.

For some reason, J.B. Bickerstaff and the Cavs have moved away from taking three-pointers over the last few games. They improved last game out against the Wizards with 32 shots from deep, still below their season average, but better than the 27 and 22 they attempted against Philadlephia and Orlando respectively. The Cavs need to re-emphasize their commitment to getting three-point looks in addition to continuing to feed their efficient and capable big men.

Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley were emphasized heavily against the Wizards, who have a poor frontcourt. But the Mavs have much more capable bigs in Dereck Lively and P.J. Washington, as well as Daniel Gafford off the bench. Allen and Mobley are good enough to overcome what the Mavs can throw at them, but Dallas is at a disadvantage on the defensive side at the perimeter. Cleveland may need to try and exploit that with their shooters.