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Key: California Dreamin'
Through the first four games of their six-game trip, the Wine and Gold look to right the ship after a pair of losses – on Tuesday night in Utah followed by an ugly defeat on Wednesday in Portland.
Both the Cavaliers and the Blazers had to overcome some travel and weather snafus, but Terry Stotts squad came out on top – dropping Cleveland for the third straight occasion at the Moda Center. The Cavs shot 34 percent from the floor and 30 percent from long-range while handing out just 14 assists. With the loss, the Cavaliers fell to 0-6 in both Utah and Portland during the second LeBron James Era in Cleveland.
The Kings snapped a three-game losing streak on Wednesday night, topping the Pistons at their brand new arena – the Golden 1 Center.
Sacramento hasn’t been quite as unkind to the Cavaliers as their previous two stops but, aside from a 120-111 win here last March, Cleveland had dropped its previous three meetings in California’s capitol.
With the Warriors waiting in the wings on Monday, the Cavaliers would love to snap out of their funk on Friday night.
Key: Boogie Nights
The Kings are built around their superstar center, DeMarcus Cousins – one of league’s best pure big men.
The mercurial veteran from Kentucky is having yet another All-Star-type season, leading the Kings in scoring (28.0 ppg) and rebounding (10.1). Cousins opened the Golden 1 Center by notching 37 points and 16 boards against the Spurs and has had some monster games since then – including a 55-point outburst against the Blazers – (the second 55-point game of his career) – on December 20, going 16-for-17 from stripe and canning a career-high five triples. It was the first time in NBA history that a player tallied at least 55 points, 10 boards, five made threes and three blocks in a game.
The Cavaliers have historically managed to keep Cousins from going off against them; in 11 career matchups, he’s averaging just 19.5 points and 11.9 boards per.
Tristan Thompson will try to hold him in check again on Friday. Double-T has grabbed double-digit boards in each of his last three outings – averaging 10.6 rebounds per over that span.
Key: Back Where It All Began
On Friday night, the greatest player in the game returns to the city where it all started – and he’ll be releasing a retro line of his sneakers to commemorate that event, beginning with the Nike Air Zoom Generation, which he wore in that unforgettable debut 14 seasons ago.
In his first professional game with the Wine and Gold – back on October 29, 2003, at then-Arco Arena – James gave the basketball world a sneak peek at the greatness he’d maintain for the next decade-and-a-half, finishing with 25 points on 12-for-20 shooting to go with nine assists, six boards and four steals.
He hasn’t slowed down since and comes into tonight’s matchup having scored at least 20 points in nine straight games – averaging 28.4 points – shooting 53 percent from the floor and 41 percent from long-range – to go with 8.4 rebounds, 6.2 assists and 1.7 steals per over that stretch.
In two games against Sacramento last season, LeBron averaged 23.0 points, 10.5 rebounds and 8.0 assists – tallying a triple-double in Cleveland’s victory on February 8 at The Q.
Key: Changing of the Guard
Since J.R. Smith fractured his thumb against the Bucks on December 20, the Cavaliers have been trying to figure out the shooting guard spot.
DeAndre Liggins brought some nice defensive energy to the starting lineup, but he’s struggled to keep up on the offensive end.
Recently, the Cavaliers made a deal to acquire veteran sharpshooter Kyle Korver to add some juice, but – joining a team like Cleveland in the middle of a prolonged road trip – he understandably has yet to find his rhythm, going a combined 2-for-10 in his first two games as a Cavalier.
To jumpstart the trip, Coach Lue made the decision to insert Iman Shumpert into the starting lineup. Shump got off to an excellent start this season on the offensive end, but like several of his teammates, has struggled shooting the ball lately – hitting on less than 20 percent of his three-point attempts over his last 11 games. But he’s no stranger to the starting lineup and his presence might shake the squad out of their recent funk.
On Friday night, he’ll lock up against seventh-year guard Garrett Temple, who’s notched double-figures in three of his previous four outings.
Key: Good Vibrations
As the Cavaliers make their way through some rough Western Conference terrain, one player who’s seen plenty of action out here is Kevin Love, who’s faced the Kings 22 times over the course of his career.
The three-time All-Star has posted some monster numbers against Sacramento over the years, including a 43-point explosion in his last appearance against the Kings with the Timberwolves.
In his homecoming on Wednesday night in Portland, Love got off to a solid start – (not as solid as his 34-point first quarter in the first meeting with the Blazers) – tallying 17 points in the first half. But he went scoreless after intermission and hasn’t been immune to the team’s recent offensive woes – shooting 9-for-29 from the floor in the Cavaliers’ recent back-to-back losses.
Other than the recent snag, however, Love’s been excellent from the floor – having hit 93 threes this season, good for 16th-best in the league. He’s hit at least two triples in 20 of his last 22 games, including three bombs in 16 of those.
He’ll match up with Anthony Tolliver, who’s been solid as of late – registering double-digit scoring in three of his last four games.