The surging Cleveland Cavaliers hope to stay undefeated at home when the Atlanta Hawks come to town.

Catch the game tomorrow at 8:00 AM, Manila time.

AWAY: Atlanta Hawks (7-11, 3-6 AWAY)

Projected starting five:

• Trae Young (day-to-day)
• Dyson Daniels
• DeAndre Hunter
• Jalen Johnson
• Clint Capela

The Hawks head to the game having lost three-straight games. Their defense has been atrocious in that stretch, allowing a whopping 128.3 points per game while scoring just 112.7 on their end, resulting in a woeful -15.6 net rating.

To make matters worse, star guard Trae Young (21.9 PPG, 11.9 APG) is questionable for tomorrow’s contest. The high-scoring, double-double machine has a tendinitis in his achilles and may sit the game out.

In Young’s potential absence, however, there’s a handful of weapons to go around, which actually makes the team’s struggles confusing. Stat-stuffing Jalen Johnson (19.9, 10.5 RPG, 5.1 APG, 1.5 SPG, 1.1 BPG) and rising ballhawk Dyson Daniels (3.2 SPG) lead that pack. There’s DeAndre Hunter, 2024 first overall pick Zacharie Risacher, and veterans Clint Capela and Bogdan Bogdanovic – Bogey is in his fifth game back and has scored 16 and 18 points in his last two appearances.

HOME: Cleveland Cavaliers (17-1, 10-0 HOME)

Projected starting five:

• Darius Garland
• Donovan Mitchell
• Isaac Okoro
• Evan Mobley
• Jarrett Allen

The league-leading Cavaliers have won back-to-back after their scorching 15-0 start was halted by the Boston Celtics. They’ve since won 128-100 vs. the New Orleans Pelicans and 122-108 against the Toronto Raptors.

While the Cavs are the number one team in points (123.4 PPG) and offensive rating, they are also anchored by a pair of big men in the paint: Evan Mobley (17.6 PPG, 8.9 RPG, 1.5 BPG) and Jarrett Allen (14.8 PPG, 11.1 RPG). Both are in a good position to have their way downlow.

As per usual, the backcourt of Donovan Mitchell (24.4 PPG) and Darius Garland (20.3 PPG, 6.9 APG) will remain dynamic. Expect the duo to cause problems against the defensively challenged Hawks.

Back-up point guard Ty Jerome (12.6 PPG, 3.8 APG, 1.6 APG) deserves a quick shoutout as he has been doing a pretty solid job in spot duty. He’s also shooting an impressive 54.4% from three on 3.2 attempts per game.

PICKS:

Spread: Cavaliers (10.5)

Over/Under: Over (240.5)