The 22-44 Mavericks will host the 40-26 Cavaliers tonight. The Cavaliers have listed Jarrett Allen and Max Strus as Out with James Harden and Keon Ellis available. The Mavericks have not yet submitted their injury report.
The Cavaliers are 13.5-point favorites on DraftKings Sportsbook with the total for this game set at 236.5 points.
Mavericks vs. Cavaliers prediction, preview
Cleveland’s season has been about winning games with offense that stays modern even when the shots aren’t falling. They’re 40–26 with a 117.4 OFFRTG and 113.4 DEFRTG. The recent trend is a little noisier than their record suggests: over the last 10 they’re basically neutral (118.3 OFFRTG, 117.0 DEFRTG, +1.3 NETRTG), and you can feel it in the results. The Cavs just lost 128–122 in Orlando after leading creators James Harden and Donovan Mitchell couldn’t quite keep pace late. The way Cleveland wins is still pretty consistent, though. They boast a high-skill backcourt with Mitchell as the downhill scorer and Harden as the floor general, with a big in either Jarrett Allen or Evan Mobley anchoring the roll. With Allen out, Mobley will be responsible for doing the damage near the rim. Even though the Cavs are just 5-7, they’ll look to keep improving as we inch closer to the postseason so that they can make a deep run.
The Mavericks, however, have been volatile and poor offensively. They’re 28th in the league with just a 109.6 OFFRTG but are around league-average on the other end, with 114.1 DEFRTG. They made big moves this season by quickly cutting their losses with the infamous Luka Doncic/Anthony Davis trade, shipping away the latter to the Washington Wizards. The Mavs look to retool around newly acquired ROTY candidate Cooper Flagg, who looks as promising as they could’ve hoped. The Mavs are 2-8 in their last 10 games and won’t be winning many more games this season. They should be much more competitive in 2026-27 with Kyrie Irving back in the mix and, hopefully, with another top lottery pick to buttress their squad.
Mavericks vs. Cavaliers pick, best bet
Best Bet: DAL Mavericks +13.5 (-112)
Cleveland’s offense is consistent enough to score on most defenses, but with Allen out, they’ll lose a bit of their rim protection. The Mavs have also looked inept lately, and the trend in their last 10 is a worrying -11.5 NETRTG. Despite this, they should still have enough juice to cover +13.5, especially with the Cavaliers still figuring things out with Harden in the mix. The Cavs are just 5-7 since acquiring Harden.
