The Cavaliers are hosting the Magic on Monday. On DraftKings Sportsbook, Cleveland is favored by 5.5 points and this game carries a total of 227.5 points.
Let’s dive into my preview and pick for the game.
Cavaliers vs. Magic preview, prediction
The Cavaliers and the Magic will go head-to-head for the second straight game Monday. These two clubs just met Saturday in Orlando and Cleveland won this contest 119-105. Franz Wagner (ankle) was out for the Magic and Darius Garland (toe) was out for the Cavaliers, both of which will remain sidelined for Monday’s rematch in Cleveland.
The Cavaliers led for the majority of this contest and led by as many as 18 points. Donovan Mitchell led the way with 36 points in Garland’s absence and Jaylon Tyson also added 17 points. As a team, Cleveland shot 53.1% from the field and 44.1% from beyond the arc. On the other side, Paolo Banchero and Desmond Bane scored 27 and 20 points for the Magic, respectively, but the team only shot 40.7% from the field and an ugly 27.5% from deep.
Overall, the Garland-less Cavaliers defeating the Wagner-less Magic wasn’t surprising. Garland is Cleveland’s third best player and the team has been just fine with him inactive this season with a 14-7 record. Meanwhile, Wagner has been Orlando’s best player this season and with him sidelined, the club has been a shell of itself with a mediocre 8-10 record.
Following the 14-win over the Magic on Saturday, the Cavaliers have won three in a row and they rank 10th in net rating this season with a 27-20 record, whereas the Magic have lost three straight and rank 17th in net rating with a 23-21 record. To make matters worse for Orlando, tonight’s rematch will be in Cleveland and the Magic are just 9-11 on the road this season, compared to the Cavaliers, who are 15-11 at home.
The Magic simply can’t compete with the Cavaliers offensively with Wagner sidelined and Orlando’s defense has also been slipping, which is usually the team’s calling card. In the new year, the Magic rank 27th in defensive rating. Banchero will need to have a big scoring outing and Orlando will need to regain their defensive form tonight if the Magic want to have any chance of getting even with Cleveland, but it’s hard to have much faith in either of those things happening for this struggling Orlando team.
Cavaliers vs. Magic pick, best bet
Winning this game shouldn’t be difficult for the Cavaliers on their home floor. Cleveland is a league-worst 17-30 ATS this season, but the team has been better recently with a 5-3 ATS record in it’s last eight and backing the Cavaliers to cover this 6.5-point spread is the right move.
Each of the Magic’s last three losses with Wagner inactive have been by double-digits.
